REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
)
) S.S.
JOINT REQUEST FOR INVESTIGATION
and
COMPLAINT-AFFIDAVIT
The undersigned Complainants FR. JOE DIZON, SISTER MARY
JOHN MANANZAN, O.S.B., DR. PABLO R. MANALASTAS, RODOLFO
NOEL I. LOZADA JR., HECTOR A. BARRIOS, GREGORIO T. FABROS,
EVITA L. JIMENEZ AND ANA LEA ESCRESA-COLINA, all of legal age,
Filipinos and with address at c/o Secretariat, 3/F CSWCD Bldg.,
Magsaysay Ave., University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City
1101, after having been sworn in accordance with law, hereby depose
and state that:
1.
On June 11, 2013 , Complainants filed an action for violations
of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (Republic Act No. 3019) as
well as provisions of other relevant criminal statutes against former
Commissioners and officers of the Commission on Elections
and
responsible directors and officers of both SMARTMATIC-ASIA PACIFIC
and SMARTMATIC –TIM. The following Respondents were impleaded in
the Complaint they filed on the said date:
A. COMELEC Commissioners and officers
i.
JOSE A. R. MELO, former Chairman;
ii.
RENE V. SARMIENTO, former Commissioner ;
iii. NICODEMO T. FERRER, former Commissioner;
v.
ARMANDO C. VELASCO, former Commissioner;
vi. LEONARDO L. LEONIDA, former Commissioner;
viii. JOSE M. TOLENTINO, JR., Director;
ix. BARTOLOME J. SINOCRUZ JR., Director; and
x.
RENATO B. GARCIA, Consultant to the Former Chairman
Melo.
xi. DENIS F. VILLORENTE, Chairman, Technical Evaluation
Committee (TEC)
xii. FERDINAND P. DE LEON, Member, TEC; and
xiii. REYNALDO T. SY, Member, TEC.
B. SMARTMATIC-ASIA PACIFIC and SMARTMATIC-TIM Corporation
directors and/or officers:
i.
CESAR FLORES, Smartmatic Asia-Pacific President, with last
known address at 16th floor, Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue
Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City,
0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines.;
2
ii.
JULIAN C. VILLA JR., Chairman, Smartmatic TIM
Corporation, with last known addresses at No. 74 JalanSetiabakti,
Damansara Heights 50490, KL, Malaysia, and 16th floor, Accralaw
Tower, Second Avenue Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park West,
Bonifacio Global City, 0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines;
iii. ARMANDO R. YANES, Chief Financial Officer, Smartmatic
International Corporation, with last known addresses at N°4
Stafford House, Garrison Savannah, St. Michael, Barbados W.I. BB
14038 and 16th floor, Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue Corner 30th
Street. Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City, 0399 Taguig
Metro Manila, Philippines;
iv. SALVADOR P. AQUE, Senior Vice President of Total
Information Management Corporation and Member of the Board of
Directors of Smartmatic TIM Corporation, with last known
addresses at 2250 P. Burgos St., Pasay City and 16th floor,
Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park
West, Bonifacio Global City, 0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines;
vi. ALBERTO R. CASTRO, member of the Board of Directors, with
last known addresses at 16th floor, Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue
Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City,
0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines;
vii. JACINTO R. PEREZ, JR., member of the Board of Directors,
with last known addresses at 1211 Consuelo St., Singalong, Manila
and 16th floor, Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue Corner 30th Street.
Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City, 0399 Taguig Metro
Manila, Philippines; and
viii. MARIAN IVY REYES-FAJARDO, member of the Board of
Directors, with last known addresses at 71-B Tindalo St., Monte
Vista Subdivision, Marikina, and 16th floor, Accralaw Tower,
Second Avenue Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park West, Bonifacio
Global City, 0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines.
2.
In this Joint Supplemental Request for Investigation and
Complaint-Affidavit, the same Complainants, joined by new ones, seek to
hold into account the following incumbent Commissioners of the
COMELEC, for their abysmal failure to protect the sanctity of the ballot
in their conduct of the May 13, 2013 elections,
i.
ii.
iii.
SIXTO SERRANO BRILLANTES JR, incumbent COMELEC
Chairperson;
LUCENITO NOLASCO TAGLE, incumbent COMMISSIONER
and
ELIAS R. YUSOPH, incumbent COMMISSIONER.
3
3.
While the incumbent COMELEC Commissioners may not be
sued in a criminal proceeding, protected as they are by constitutional
immunity, they may however be subject to an investigation by this
Honorable Office for purposes of an impeachment proceeding. In this
regard, Complainants invoke the Ombudsman Act (Republic Act №
6770), Section 22, viz:
Section 22. Investigatory Power — The Office of the
Ombudsman shall have the power to investigate any serious
misconduct in office allegedly committed by officials removable
by impeachment, for the purpose of filing a verified complaint
for impeachment, if warranted.
In any case, the proceedings may also later on be turned into a criminal
investigation, once the said COMELEC officers retire, resign or are
removed from office.
4.
Complainants also invoke the UNIFORM RULES ON ADMINISTRATIVE
CASES (URAC) for the charges of grave misconduct and/or gross
incompetence versus the COMELEC officers who are clearly responsible
for the technological disaster in the 13 May 2013 national and local
elections, namely:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR JOSE MARUNDAN TOLENTINO JR,
PROJECT MANAGEMENT OFFICE (PMO) Head;
DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR BARTOLOME JAVILLONAR
SINOCRUZ, Acting Executive Director ;
DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR HELEN AGUILA FLORES,
SPECIAL BID & AWARDS COMMITTEE (SBAC) Chairperson;
DIRECTOR ESTER LOMAAD VILLAFLOR ROXAS, PMO
TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP (TWG) Head; and
DIRECTOR EDUARDO DULAY MEJOS, Finance Director
(Intelligence Funds Liquidator).
In addition, they seek to hold the same Comelec Directors, who are not
protected by constitutional immunity from suits while in office,
criminally liable for violations of the relevant provisions of Republic Act
3019 and other applicable criminal statutes, along with the following
Smartmatic and Smartmatic-TIM directors and/or corporate officers who
were also impleaded in the original Complainant filed on June 11, 2013:
CESAR FLORES, Smartmatic Asia-Pacific President, with last
known address at 16th floor, Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue
Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City,
0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines.;
ii.
JULIAN C. VILLA JR., Chairman, Smartmatic TIM
Corporation, with last known addresses at No. 74 Jalan Setiabakti,
4
Damansara Heights 50490, KL, Malaysia, and 16th floor, Accralaw
Tower, Second Avenue Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park West,
Bonifacio Global City, 0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines;
iii. ARMANDO R. YANES, Chief Financial Officer, Smartmatic
International Corporation, with last known addresses at N°4
Stafford House, Garrison Savannah, St. Michael, Barbados W.I. BB
14038 and 16th floor, Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue Corner 30th
Street. Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City, 0399 Taguig
Metro Manila, Philippines;
iv. SALVADOR P. AQUE, Senior Vice President of Total
Information Management Corporation and Member of the Board of
Directors of Smartmatic TIM Corporation, with last known
addresses at 2250 P. Burgos St., Pasay City and 16th floor,
Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park
West, Bonifacio Global City, 0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines;
vi. ALBERTO R. CASTRO, member of the Board of Directors, with
last known addresses at 16th floor, Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue
Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City,
0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines;
vii. JACINTO R. PEREZ, JR., member of the Board of Directors,
with last known addresses at 1211 Consuelo St., Singalong, Manila
and 16th floor, Accralaw Tower, Second Avenue Corner 30th Street.
Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City, 0399 Taguig Metro
Manila, Philippines; and
viii. MARIAN IVY REYES-FAJARDO, member of the Board of
Directors, with last known addresses at 71-B Tindalo St., Monte
Vista Subdivision, Marikina, and 16th floor, Accralaw Tower,
Second Avenue Corner 30th Street. Crescent Park West, Bonifacio
Global City, 0399 Taguig Metro Manila, Philippines.
Background Facts
5.
Complainants adopt and incorporate with this Joint
Supplemental Request for Investigation and Complaint-Affidavit by
reference the factual allegations contained in the original Complaint they
filed on June 11, 2013 ;
6.
Further, they adopt and incorporate into this Joint
Supplemental Request for Investigation and Complaint-Affidavit the facts
as recognized and/or outlined by the Supreme Court in the following
decisions:
5
6.1
6.2
6.3
Archbishop Fernando Capalla et al versus Comelec &
Smartmatic, GR № 201112, 13 June 2012;
SOLIDARITY FOR SOVEREIGNTY (S4S) et al versus Comelec &
Smartmatic, GR № 201121, 13 June 2012;
TANGGULANG DEMOKRASYA (TANDEM) et al versus Comelec &
Smartmatic, GR № 201413, 13 June 2012;
7.
In the said decisions, and also in concurring and dissenting
opinions found in the decisions, it is obvious that corporate directors
and/or officers of SMARMATIC-ASIA PACIFIC and SMARTMATIC-TIM,
with the connivance of their cohorts in the COMELEC, kept the Supreme
Court in total darkness about the true owners of the PCOS technology
and the problems such fact entailed.
8.
It is indeed a wonder why, despite the problems encountered
by COMELEC in the use of the PCOS technology, the Respondents Brillantes et al., - insisted on using it for the May 13, 2013 mid-term
elections.
9.
In fact, on June 30, 2010, or a little more than one month
after the May 20, 2010 elections, the COMELEC’s Advisory Council
recommended to the poll body not to make use of PCOS technology again
in any elections.
10. The “Option to Purchase” PCOS machines clause in the 2009
Contract between Comelec and machine manufacturer Smartmatic-Tim
Corp – was to expire on Dec 31, 2010.
11. Yet
despite
this,
the
SMARTMATIC-ASIA
PACIFIC
SMARTMATIC-TIM corporate directors and/or officers who are
Respondents in this caecontinued to offer to sell the PCOS machines to
COMELEC.
12. On January 12, 2012, the Advisory Council issued Resolution
№ 2012001, recommending against the re-use of the PCOS machines for
the May 13, 2013 mid-term elections.
13. However, COMELEC Commissioners Brillantes, Tagle and
Yusoph, in conspiracy with COMELEC directors/officers
Tolentino,
Sinocruz, Flores, Roxas and Mejos rejected the Advisory Council’s
recommendation.
14. Instead, on March 30, 2012, the above-named COMELEC
Commissioners issued Resolutions № 9376 and 9377 and 9378
approving the purchase of the PCOS machines for the May 13, 2013
mid-term elections.
15. On
September 11, 2012
SMARTMATIC-ASIA PACIFIC’s
principals filed the following verified complaint in the Court of Chancery
of the State of Delaware versus Dominion Voting System:
6
16. For clarity, below is an extended excerpt from a newspaper of
general circulation, The Philippine Star, 1 reporting on the case by
1
Annex “A”
7
Smartmatic versus Dominion Voting System in the Court of Chancery of
the State of Delaware: 2
It appears that the US-based Dominion Voting Systems,
which supplied the election technology to Smartmatic for the
Philippine elections, terminated its 2009 license agreement
with the latter on May 23, 2012. As a result, the termination
denies Smartmatic access to technical support and assistance
as well as Dominion’s proprietary source code and other
“escrowed materials” which are vital to correcting and
“enhancing” the PCOS system upon request of Comelec in
March this year. Failure to correct the PCOS system’s program
errors and bugs may doom the scheduled 2013 mid-term
elections. Dominion is the real owner of the election
technology — a fact Smartmatic hid during the 2010 elections.
With the contract terminated all claims of Smartmatic that
they corrected the errors is untrue. It cannot correct the PCOS
errors and defects that are causing erratic counting, among
other problems.
It took a legal fight between Dominion and Smartmatic to
get at the facts of just what happened in 2010. Smartmatic
has had to admit system errors of its technology in the
compact flash card fiasco during the May 3, 2010 final testing
and sealing or a week before the May 2010 elections in the
Philippines. It blamed Dominion’s software for failing to
correctly read and record the paper ballots. The Venezuelan
company accused Dominion of breaking the 2009 license
agreement by failing to deliver “fully functional technology” for
the 2010 Philippine elections, and failing to place in escrow
the
required
source
code,
hardware
design,
and
manufacturing data. This is an explicit admission by
Smartmatic of the failure of its system to function fully,
resulting in glaring errors. The Delaware lawsuit was the
opening needed by concerned citizens. Moreover, the original
licensing agreement between the two companies only allows
Smartmatic the use of the technology in the Philippines in
2010. There is no clear explicit provision whether its use is
allowed in the 2013 elections.
17. The immediate implications of this revelation are profound.
18. The COMELEC opted to purchase the same technology for the
May 13, 2013 mid-term elections.
2
DAMNING EVIDENCE AGAINST SMARTMATIC PCOS by Carmen N. Pedrosa
quoting Professor Bobby M. Tuazon of AUTOMATED ELECTION SYSTEM
WATCH (AESWatch) ─ Philippine Star 10 November 2012
8
19. Yet, because DOMINION now refused to grant to
SMARTMATIC access to the technology it had developed, SMARTMATIC
had no choice but to deploy yet again the same machines used in the
May 10, 2010 elections –now already three years old – to sell to
COMELEC, to the great injury of the sanctity and integrity of the ballot
in the Philippines.
20. There were strong indications that these machines were not,
properly inventoried, nor were they at least checked and repaired for
defects:
21. There were two official mock elections held to test the PCOS.
The first was held on 24 July 2012 in the House of Representatives,
using the best available PCOS and under the best environmental
conditions; that is, dry indoor luxury plus temperature comfortable to
humans and ideal to PCOS.3 The second was held on 02 February 2013
using the best available PCOS and under realistic environmental
conditions.
22. Unfortunately, both mock polls were full of embarrassing
glitches. 4 No less than the COMELEC Chairman himself, Sixto Serrano
Brillantes, together with numerous other high-ranking Comelec officials,
saw with their own eyes the unreliability of the best available PCOS.
Since that batch of PCOS represents Smartmatic’s crème of the crop,
how much worse then are the conditions of all the other PCOS which
voters will use on 13 May 2013 nationwide?
23. The defects were so glaring that the BOARD OF ELECTION
INSPECTORS (BEI) or “Teachers” were forced to improvise, using common
school children’s pencils to serve as rolling pins for thermal papers, as
can be seen in tis visibly upsetting front page headline picture of the
newspaper Manila Bulletin: 5
3
Despite the ideal showroom setting, the PCOS errors were so huge
that Smartmatic had to invent new laws of mathematics to bury the
blunders under a deep confusion of numerical jargon.
4
Annex “B”
5
Manila Bulletin: Sunday 03 February 2013: Front Page
9
24. It thus came as no surprise that people clamored for more
mock elections to practice rectifying the glitches. 6
25. The JOINT CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE (JCOC) under
the Election Automation Law (Republic Act № 9369) held a hearing on
Wednesday 06 February 2013 to investigate the dismal mock election
which Comelec and Smartmatic describe as “not perfect” 7 while
countless many others demanded more tests.
26. Yet COMELEC and SMARTMATIC refused to carry out more
rounds of mock elections on the lame excuse that a positive review by a
certain Technical Evaluation Committee was enough. 8
27. After pinning the blame on teachers, SMARTMATIC officials
had the gall to blame the glitches to voters who expressed their vote by
means of a shade appearing like a smiley inside one of the ballot ovals. 9
They made a mockery of the mock elections, according to one Comelec
official. 10
28. Unfortunately, the results were still the same for those shades
that were 100% regular: either the PCOS kept on rejecting the ballots or
the count was inaccurate for those ballots that were lucky enough to be
read by the PCOS machine used in the mock polls.
6
Annex “C”
7
Annex “D”
8
Annexes “E” and F
9
Annex “G”
10
Annex “H”
10
29. Indeed, the accuracy ratings of the PCOS machines in the
mock polls were even worse than that reached by the machines during
the May 10, 2010 elections.
30. To recall, according to COMELEC requirements and
specifications, the PCOS machines to be used in the Automated Elections
of 2010 need to have accuracy rate of 99.995% or higher.
This is
provided for in the Terms of Reference of the bidding for the automated
election of 2010. The required accuracy rate means that of only 1 vote
out of every 20,000 case may be miscounted.
31. But in a study conducted by Dr. Felix P. Muga II, it was
found that the accuracy rating of the SMARTMATIC-PCOS machines is
way below the standard set forth by the COMELEC.
32. The results of the Random Manual Audit (RMA) commissioned
by the COMELEC itself after the 2010 elections, held in June and July of
that year, found that the PCOS machines only had an accuracy rating of
99.6%. This means that the PCOS machines had 80 miscounts for every
20,000 voting marks that it appreciated.
33. In the 2012 mock elections, the accuracy rating shown by the
PCOS machines was only 97.215%.
Whereas in 2010 the PCOS
machines had 80 miscounts per 20,000 votes, in 2012, the miscounts
rose to 557 per 20,000 votes.
34. This is in clear violation of the COMELEC Terms of Reference
for the purchase of the PCOS machines which provides for a 99.995%
accuracy rating.
35. The important point here is that, as can be seen in the mutual
admissions in the charges and countercharges exchanged between
SMARTMATIC and DOMINION, there are serious problems in the PCOS
technology of DOMINION which SMARTMATIC sold to Comelec. 11
36. Incumbent COMELEC Commissioners Brillantes et al., knew
about the problems encountered by the Filipino electorate in the use of
the PCOS technology during the May 13, 2013 elections;
37. They knew about the troubling short cuts taken by their
predecessors who approved its use in the same elections;
38. They knew about the new legal and technical troubles faced by
SMARTMATIC in its newly-arisen licensing conflict with DOMINION;
11
Annex “I”
11
39. They also knew that SMARTMATIC no longer had legal access
to the PCOS technology as its license to the technology had expired and
was not renewed by DOMINION;
40. By parity of reason, they also knew that all that SMARTMATIC
had were old PCOS machines used in the May 10, 2013 elections, with
little or no provision for spare parts needed to refurbish or otherwise
repair the used machines.
41. Yet, in supreme betrayal of public trust, if not high criminal
complicity,
the Respondents who are incumbent COMELEC
Commissioners and officers, in conspiracy with SMARTMATIC-ASIA
PACIFIC and SMARTMATIC–TIM corporate directors and/or officers
pushed for the purchase by the government of the same highlyproblematic automated elections technology .
42. Moreover, in conspiracy with one another, as was done in the
May 13, 2010 elections, Respondents removed or caused to be removed
the safeguards provided by law in the implementation of an automated
elections, to the extreme prejudice of the Filipino electorate.
43. They made the same highly questioning short cuts taken by
their predecessors in the May 10, 2010 elections, placing under serious
cloud the sanctity and the integrity of the May 13, 2013 mid-term
elections.
44. Come Election Day of 13 May 2013, the massive glitches
caused by old and defective PCOS machines proved disastrous:
PCOS glitches hound elections
BY PURPLE ROMERO
POSTED: 2013/05/13/2:05 PM | UPDATED 2013/05/13/6:30 PM
http://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections-2013/29041-pcos-glitches-hound-elections
12
DEFECTIVE PCOS MACHINES = LONG LINES. Photo by Jerome Jungco
Voting in a precinct in Cagayan de Oro was stalled due to defective PCOS machines.
MANILA, Philippines - [2ND UPDATE] Glitches in the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines
have caused difficulties in voting in some areas in the country on Monday, May 13. According to a
Comelec projection, 200 PCOS machines may have defects, Comelec chairman Sixto Brillantes said.
Rappler gathered details on these from reports on the ground and verified posts on social media:
Luzon: In Quirino Elementary School in Project 2, Quezon City, PCOS machines for precincts 3947
to 3950 stopped working in the afternoon. Election Supervisor Vergie Monteverde said they
counted 271 votes and will use other working PCOS machines from other precincts to transmit the
votes. Comelec officer Chona Larupay told Rappler that about 1,000 voters in Taguig's cluster 38 at
Bagumbayan Elementary failed to feed their ballots into the PCOS machines after the board of
election inspectors failed to reset the count in the PCOS machine to zero. In Manila, a PCOS
machine in Padre Burgos Elementary School stopped working after reading 21 ballots. Another
PCOS machine in a polling cluster in Aurora Quezon Elementary School in San Andres, Manila also
malfunctioned. Election inspector Susana Oppura said the machine assigned to voters of Barangay
703 under precincts 2772 A and B did not read the ballots. Fourteen PCOS machines did not work
in Ibaan, Santo Tomas, Lemery, San Pascual, San Nicolas, Mabini, Laurel, Balete, Batangas City,
Tanauan, Nasugbu, San Jose, San Juan and Padre Garcia, all in Batangas. In Pampanga, voters in
Clustered Precinct #15 in Barangay Concepcion were not able to feed their ballots into a PCOS
machine after it malfunctioned, when the back-up memory card for it was inserted, PCOS
technician Karen Catu said. Polling in some precincts in Alaminos, San Pablo in Laguna was
temporarily cancelled because of failure of PCOS machines. In Bicol, the army reported that at
least 34 out of 5539 PCOS machines have glitches. PCOS malfunction was also reported in
Sagrada, Tinambac in Camarines Sur.
Visayas: 5 PCOS Machines failed to work in Talisay City in Cebu for an hour.
Mindanao: Voting was suspended for more than 20 minutes in cluster Precincts 78-79 in Barangay
Apopong, General Santos City after the PCOS machine briefly malfunctioned at around 9:30 in the
morning. Voting however resumed after it was repaired. The same problem occurred in Precinct
254 in Lagao at 12 noon. The PPCRV said voting was delayed in a precinct in Isabela East Central
Elementary School due to glitches of 2 PCOS machines. The Philippine Information Agency reported
there are 3 identified defective PCOS machines in 3 barangays in Binuangan town in Misamis
Oriental. Defective PCOS machines in Central School-Cagayan de Oro City have led to congested
voting lines. In Cagayan de Oro, there were 26 PCOS machines that failed to work the in precincts
of Bulua, Misamis Oriental General Comprehensive High School, Carmen, Kauswagan and Lumbia.
Technicians were able to fix 18 of the machines. The rest of the PCOS machines would be replaced.
Katherine Visconti, Edwin Espejo, Ace Tamayo, Rappler Research Team, Move ambassadors
45. Below are pictures of voter disenfranchisement by machine
breakdown.
13
Halos isang oras na nasira ang isang PCOS machine sa Sucat, Muntinlupa
kaninang umaga. Kuha ni YouScooper @adsibal pic.twitter.com/BQj0HXNBgW
Medyo nakakaworry ito. Hindi gumagana ang PCOS machine sa precint 4188A sa
Quezon City. #eleksyon2013 pic.twitter.com/iRHRdqZQhk
46. The voters were not remiss in their duty to vote on the day of
elections. They followed the instructions. They shaded the ballots in
accordance with the instructions. After completion of the shades, they
already performed their duty to the country.
14
47. The problem is when they fed their ballots into the PCOS
machine, it COS refused to accept the ballots. Who was at fault here, the
voter or PCOS? More specifically, who is the culprit for the
disenfranchisement? Why must the voters suffer for the sins of Comelec
and Smartmatic?
PCOS machine sa Buhatan Integrated National School ginamitan ng stick para
bumaba ang balota @gmanews #eleksyon2013 pic.twitter.com/BHyF20LhiP
48. The PARISH PASTORAL COUNCIL FOR RESPONSIBLE VOTING (PPCRV)
was quick to defend Comelec and pass the blame on teachers.
15
PPCRV BLAMES POOR BEI TRAINING
FOR
PCOS FAILURE
By Camille Diola
The Philippine Star
VIA ABS CBN NEWS
POSTED 2013/05/13/7:27 PM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/05/13/13/ppcrv-blames-poor-bei-training-pcos-failure
MANILA, Philippines -- An official of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible
Voting (PPCRV) on Monday partially attributed glitches of several precinct count
optical scan (PCOS) machines nationwide to the lack of hands-on training of Board
of Election Inspectors (BEI) staff.
PPCRV information technology director William Emmanuel Yu said in an interview
with Philstar.com that in some cases, optical scanners malfunctioned not because
of inherent product defects but due to the lack of experience of election inspectors
handling the machines.
"Maybe [the Commission on Elections] should invest more time to train (BEI
members). They were only given a crash course so I don't think they will be able
to resolve all possible problems," Yu said.
He added that most inspectors -- mostly public school teachers manning over
78,000 precincts -- have never touched the machine prior to election day on
Monday.
"In one session, there would be a thousand BEI members. Hindi naman siguro
makaka-hands-on lahat," Yu said.
The technology expert said that in order for BEI to troubleshoot the devices
properly, the Comelec should train them in two to three more sessions spread
throughout the months before polling day.
"It also happened in 2010. We just copied the [training] template in 2013. It
works to a certain degree, but then again we would have some outliers," Yu
added.
He cited common problems as paper jams and the wrong feeding of ballots into
the machines that cause some of the reported glitches. These, however, could be
resolved by BEI locally if trained properly
"I feel a department store cashier is in a better position to man the PCOS machine
than the BEI staff because they have a lot of experience. It's a question of
practice," the PPCRV official said.
49. This explains in part why the CATHOLIC BISHOPS CONFERENCE OF
THE PHILIPPINES (CBCP)
had distanced itself from PPCRV, with a top
official calling the latter a COMELEC “lapdog” instead of a “watchdog” of
elections. 12
50. Later in the evening of 13 May 2013, while Smartmatic
President Alberto Castro Rico was in the PPCRV Command Center,
12
Annex “J”
16
PPCRV reported a mathematically-impossible quick count. PPCRV’s Ana
De Villa Singson – daughter of PPCRV head Tita De Villa and erstwhile
PR woman for SMARTMATIC – traced it to a faulty Smartmatic computer
script.
PPCRV APOLOGIZES FOR WRONG TALLY
By Camille Diola
The Philippine Star
VIA GMA NETWORK NEWS
UPDATED 2013/05/13/9:20 PM
http://www.philstar.com/election-2013/2013/05/13/941827/ppcrv-apologizes-wrong-tally
MANILA, Philippines - The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) retracted initial
results of the senatorial race that it released nearly an hour after voting closed on Monday night.
PPCRV communications director Ana de Villa Singson apologized to the media for the initial tally of
votes that were deemed too high for the number of voters in the precincts. The PPCRV, the
Comelec citizen arm, is using a "transparency" server acquiring data from the machines as an
official partner of the polling body. Singson, who said that the mistaken numbers were based on a
script from the PCOS machines, reproached the optical scanners' maker Smartmatic for the
unverified numbers in its unoffficial count. "We are requesting Smartmatic to fix the script and
issue an explanation. We apologize to those who have read the data. We are requesting it to be
fixed," Singson said. Earlier, leading candidates in the group's partial and unofficial tally numbered
to over 12 million votes supposedly recorded from over 1,100 precincts with Team PNoy's Grace
Poe leading the race. The screens in PPCRV's command center in Manila, meanwhile, were shut off
as its volunteers re-check the numbers transmitted from the servers. "We cannot continue relaying
data that requires double checking," Singson added. There are around 76,000 polling precincts
located nationwide. Smartmatic president Cesar Flores, meanwhile, said in a television interview
that the glitch could have been caused by how the PPCRV exported the data fed by the
transparency server.
SMARTMATIC DENIES HAND IN PPCRV COUNT
by David Dizon
ABS-CBNnews.com
POSTED
UPDATED
2013/05/13/09:29 PM
2013/05/13/09:29 PM
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/05/13/13/smartmatic-denies-hand-ppcrv-count
MANILA - The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) has stopped its
partial and unofficial count of the senatorial race after erroneous results were released
and aired Monday night at around 8 p.m. PPCRV Communications Head Anna de Villa
Singson shut down screens displaying results of the PPCRV-KBP unofficial count at the
command center and apologized to reporters. She said she will ask PCOS supplier
Smartmatic about the count after the vote count reached over 12 million for one
senatorial candidate even if only over 1,418 precincts had transmitted the results. "With
apologies to the public, the results do not match precinct votes. Smartmatic made to
explain the gap. Until then PPCRV will no longer be releasing data/unofficial results until
Smartmatic explains gap," the PPCRV said in its official Twitter account.
51. Mysteriously, days after the manual correction of the
mathematically-impossible quick count, the ratio of winners from the
administration and opposition candidates remained
astonishingly
proportional to the mathematically-impossible quick count.
52. TEAM PNOY constantly got 59.50% while UNITED NATIONALIST
ALLIANCE (UNA) constantly got 30.93% while all others constantly got
9.57% following a deterministic formula. Even the percentages for each
candidate followed a deterministic pattern, racing concerns that the vote
count was being manipulated.
17
UNCRITICAL MEDIA
ILLEGITIMATE ELECTION
2013-05-16
By René B. Azurin
http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Opinion&title=Uncritical-media%2C-illegitimate-election&id=70275
LISTENING TO TV anchors and news commentators congratulate Commission on
Elections Chairman Sixto Brillantes, Jr. for his staging of the 2013 automated polls
makes one painfully aware of how uncritical Philippine media is. For what, pray
tell, is Brillantes being congratulated? For brazenly violating key provisions of our
poll automation law? For decisions and actions that make stealing the vote in our
automated polls much easier with no one being the wiser? For depriving the
Filipino voter of the fundamental right to see how his vote is being counted?
Hmmm, are the people supposed to function as the people’s watchdogs so utterly
lacking in discernment, analytical ability, and judgment?
Well, uh, yes. The problem is that many media practitioners today are not
intellectually prepared to deal with complex issues and are often too lazy to put in
the work needed to prepare to deal with such issues. This is evident in the quality
of our talk shows where the host is content to lob superficial "gimme" questions at
a guest instead of engaging him/her in serious discussions that will illuminate
difficult subjects or unmask hidden agendas. It is also evident in the quality of our
news stories where reporters write (and editors print) what they are told by
subjects without making the effort to study the case and challenge questionable
assertions. In this situation, it is difficult to overcome the fact that much of media
-- not just Philippine media, to be sure -- are owned by vested interests and exist
mainly to sing paeans to the powerful, rich, or famous. For many media
practitioners, it is enough to sing for whoever pays for their supper.
Doubtless, these factors were in play in the way the media treated the issue of our
automated polls. Some media practitioners simply could not stand people who
talked in what seemed like technical gobbledygook and just turned them off. Some
simply could not understand the issues, even when these were simplified as much
as possible. Some were simply too lazy to put in the work to understand the
issues. Some were provided incentives to ignore the real issues and to just follow
the approved story line. And some must have been told by the vested interests
their newspaper or TV station represented not to offend the powers that pay for
the ads.
And so, Philippine media uncritically bought into the deception perpetuated by
Brillantes and his patrons that the 2013 automated elections were a "success." In
reality, they were not. Without a public review of the source code of the programs
used, the voting public cannot know how their votes were counted and, without
"access to the count," there can be no transparency and, hence, no credibility.
Without the personal digital signatures of the mandated-by-law election officials,
there were no valid election returns and, hence, no legitimate way to proclaim
winners. With non-specification rewritable CF memory cards and accessible ports
on the PCOS machines, tampering of election results was made possible in
unsecure locations all over the country. Indeed, even if Comelec (criminally)
disabled all the mechanisms whereby voters might possibly validate and
authenticate the results, it is becoming clear that wholesale electronic
manipulation took place in these 2013 polls..
18
UNCRITICAL MEDIA
ILLEGITIMATE ELECTION
2013-05-16
By René B. Azurin
http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Opinion&title=Uncritical-media%2C-illegitimate-election&id=70275
(CONTINUATION)
As first pointed out by political activist Ado Paglinawan, the way the 2013 election results came in
was "highly suspicious." He correctly observed that, "from the smallest count to the biggest count,
there is consistency in the space between the first 15 senatorial candidates…. The progression
through the night is mathematically predictable, and is a statistical improbability." The nationwide
trend observed by Mr. Paglinawan in the senatorial tally indicated to him that the count "was
following a pre-programmed formula based on earlier pre-paid surveys, rather than the actual
vote." It was clear to him, he wrote, "that an earlier decision of ranking had been predetermined
and the proportion of votes had been pre-designated from a national perspective, with a total
disregard for provincial and regional nuances…. From 10% of the vote to 60%, the tally has been
running a consistent vote share. As the votes from different provinces came in, the voting pattern
was identical for the senatorial positions, something contrary to historical experience in Philippine
politics." Former Comelec IT director Ernie del Rosario adds: "The progressive tallies follow some
sort of deterministic linear equation devoid of the influence of any probabilistic parameter or
variable. This can only mean one thing -- it is a pre-designed results reporting mechanism that fits
the 9-3 survey instead of a tally of the actual votes. I will call it the 9-3 Formula. Notice that the
rankings of the candidates in the entire tally (1st to 33rd place) from the time the first report was
published to subsequent ones are practically unchanged. What happened to the individual
candidates’ known bailiwicks that should have caused some ranking movements in the tallied
results? Smoothened by the 9-3 linear formula?" Mr. del Rosario then wryly remarks, "Magdadaya
rin lang ang mga ito, medyo sana lagyan nila ng konting pag-iisip [These guys who planned to
cheat should have maybe put a little more thought into it]." Indeed, the count at the PPCRV
operations center was suspiciously seen to be coming in almost 10 times faster than the count at
the Namfrel center, presumably an impossibility since both entities are accredited citizens’ arms of
Comelec and supposedly getting exactly the same reports. The sudden stoppage of the by-then
incredibly bloated count of the PPCRV at around 9 of Monday evening was the result of the
realization that the tallying program used incorporated a massive error. This could not have been a
"formatting error" as claimed by PPCRV spokesman Ana de Villa-Singson -- an arithmetic (dagdag)
operation was performed, hence it was a program error. Then, in her scramble to distance PPCRV
from the error, Ms. Singson revealed that it was a Smartmatic problem and that it was a
Smartmatic technician, Marlon Garcia (a Venezuelan), who was fixing it. This raises the question:
What is a Smartmatic technician doing fiddling with the canvassing program of a supposedly
independent citizens’ watchdog? Then: Why was PPCRV, supposedly independent, using a
Smartmatic canvassing program? And: Why did this Smartmatic program -- one of those never
publicly reviewed -- contain such a monstrous error? And: Why was this canvassing program
(which should have been sealed into place prior to the elections) so unsecure that it could be
accessed and altered by a Smartmatic technician while canvassing was already in progress? One
implication of all this is that PPCRV is not an independent citizens’ watchdog. What it clearly looks
like is a lapdog of the Smartmatic-Comelec conspiracy. Finally, why is it that every time Comelec
Chairman Brillantes speaks he seems to be screwing the Filipino people just a bit more? His
announcement Monday evening, just as precinct results were beginning to be transmitted to
canvassing centers, that Comelec would completely suspend the official canvassing of votes until
10 a.m. the following morning because "pagod na rin kami [we are already tired]" defies reason.
For only one day every year -- actually every three years -- the Filipino people expect election
officials to work overtime… and he is too tired to do so? Following his example, the teachers
manning precincts all over the country would be justified in walking off their posts in the early
evening of election day because they would have been certainly more overworked by that time
than a Comelec chairman who can easily have been sleeping in his air-conditioned office all day.
Brillantes’ thin excuse cannot help but intensify suspicions. The whole rationale for automating our
polls is to get instant results… and he decides to defer the official canvass because he is tired?
Results were being transmitted right then (as polls were closing) and would be coming in
throughout the night, so why delay the canvass? Was this to allow prior review of the results so
that these could be altered before the "official" canvass? Even an uncritical media ought to wonder.
The critical already realize that what we just had was a thoroughly illegitimate election.
19
53. Unwilling to investigate the deterministic 59.50% by 30.93%
by 9.57% pattern that does not happen in real life, Comelec rushed the
proclamations of some of senatorial candidates, thus eliciting scorching
comments from various election law experts. To quote:
MACALINTAL:
CERTIFICATE OF PROCLAMATIONS INVALID
By Leslie Ann G. Aquino
17 May 2013
http://www.mb.com.ph/article.php?aid=12394&sid=1&subid=2#.UZn6RaKqka8
Election lawyer Romulo Macalintal on Friday urged the six recently proclaimed
senators to return their certificate of proclamation saying it is null and void. “The
Certificate of Proclamation (COP) issued by the Comelec to Grace Poe, Loren
Legarda, Alan Peter Cayetano, Chiz Escudero, Nancy Binay, and Sonny Angara as
alleged winners in a partial proclamation of results is null and void,” Atty. Romulo
Macalintal said in an interview. “Such proclamation is defective because it does not
contain the number of votes obtained by the alleged winners and no ranking was
made but merely based on alphabetical order,” he added.
Under its rules, Macalintal said, the Comelec does not even have the authority to
make a partial proclamation since the rules provide for a “completion of canvass”
as basis of such proclamation.
He said Binay should be appreciated for knowing the law and giving respect to the
voters by not accepting her COP as she would rather wait for the final tally and
proclamation of twelve winning senatorial candidates. “Thus, it will be the shining
moment in the political career of the five (5) “proclaimed” candidates if they will
return or surrender the said COP to the Comelec since it is not a valid
proclamation,” said Macalintal.
“For the six proclaimed senatorial candidates, such gesture could be a shining
moment for them because it plainly shows the importance that they put on the
democratic process, and how much they value every vote cast for them,” he
added.
He said these senators and all candidates have spent the past months tirelessly
soliciting votes from the electorate, and, it would be a shame if those votes would,
after all, end up as not being counted. “Whatever happened to Comelec's
celebrated one-liner that “every vote counts?” asked Macalintal.
He said as early as 1968 the Supreme Court held in Mutuc vs Comelec that an
incomplete canvass is illegal and cannot be the basis of subsequent proclamation
thus mandating the Comelec to “count ALL the votes cast and consider ALL the
returns”. “Without including the votes in the proclamation is disrespectful of the
returns and in effect to disenfranchise the voters,” Macalintal cited the ruling
Expediency, he said, cannot also be the reason to make a hasty proclamation.
saying the Supreme Court in Mutuc case said that “the Comelec has no power to
decide questions involving the right to vote because to do so is in effect to deny
the voters their votes.” “The Comelec has ample time to await the uncanvassed
COCs since there are still 45 days remaining before the June 30, 2013 statutory
date for the winning senatorial candidates to assume their office,” said Macalintal.
20
POLL POSTCRIPT: MAY 13 EXERCISE
FLUNKED
STANDARDS FOR
TRANSPARENCY
& ACCOUNTABILITY
By ABIGAIL KWOK
2013-05-17-12:38
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/61997/poll-postcript--may-13-exercise-flunked-standards-for-transparency-accountability---watchdog
MANILA, Philippines - Poll watchdog Lente (Legal Network for Truthful Elections) said
Friday the May 13 midterm elections left much to be desired, with several areas having
experienced disfranchisement of voters, vote-buying and other anomalies. In a press
conference in Quezon City, Lente said there was "no genuine elections" at least not in
accordance with international standards of "inclusiveness, transparency, accountability
and public confidence." Among the most damning marks of the exercise—the second
nationally automated one since a landmark law was passed---was the lack of transparency
in the disposition of results in many places where electronic transmission from the
precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines failed, and teacher-poll deputies resorted to
other means of sending the data to local boards of canvassers. Lawyer Kenjie Aman said
lack of transparency marred this year's elections, especially in places where PCOS
machines malfunctioned. He elaborated: "The lack of transparency as to which precincts
failed to transmit during the recently concluded elections and the last 2010 elections
hinder the public from identifying the problem areas, compelling the Comelec to fix such
problems and monitoring whether Comelec has done so." He said Comelec's "token
release of the source code review just days before Election Day" prevented people from
scrutinizing the source code which was essential in ensuring integrity of the election
system. Aman said they received reports from different field offices of cases of:
• discrepancies between the Posted Computerized Voters' List (PCVL) and the Election Day
Computerized Voters' List (EDVCL);
• insufficiency of ballots, oversized ballots and pre-shaded ballots;
• flying voters; vote-buyers and vote-sellers;
• a number of persons with disabilities (PWDs) were unable to vote due to lack of access;
Field officers of Lente reported discrepancies in the voters' list in Regions 12
(Soccsksargen) and 13 (Caraga). There were also reported cases of insufficient ballots in
Butuan City with one precinct reporting 469 missing ballots. Vote-buying was also
rampant, with amounts ranging from P20 to P500. There were also cases of unlawful
electioneering where candidates were campaigning inside the precincts on Election Day.
Pre-shaded ballots were also reported for party-list groups. In Regions 2 (Cagayan), 3
(Central Luzon) and 4 (Calabarzon) there were incidents where BEIs were unable to
accommodate PWDs. Comelec's lack of accountability in addressing these problems poses
a concern and should be addressed, Lente said. "We expected more from the commission,
from its partner institutions and from frontliners who could've handled the elections
better," Aman said. Despite the anomalies, Lente admitted that they would not be able to
file charges against Comelec or election officers due to lack of willing complainants.
Instead, it appealed to those who witnessed any anomaly or were disfranchised to come
forward. The group said it is willing to provide legal assistance to them for free. As one of
its recommendations, Lente said all BEIs, support staff, and technical personnel should
undergo intensive training particularly on vulnerable sectors. Lawyer Rona Caritos, Lente
executive director, said trainings should also focus on how to handle PWD voters and
other concerns. Lente also recommended stricter custody of PCOS machines and other
election paraphernalia to prevent incidents of missing ballots. Caritos said they are also
pushing for mandatory biometrics for voters to preserve the integrity of the voters' list,
reveal areas where PCOS machines failed to transmit results and timely release of the
source code for review.
Lente is expected to submit its recommendations to the Comelec soon.
21
WITH DUE RESPECT
PREMATURE, IMPRUDENT AND ILLEGAL
Saturday 18 May 2013
by ARTEMIO R. PANGANIBAN
http://opinion.inquirer.net/52851/premature-imprudent-and-illegal
With due respect to the Commission on Elections, I find no legal and factual basis for the
proclamation in installment of six senatorial candidates (Grace Poe, Loren Legarda, Alan
Peter Cayetano, Chiz Escudero, Nancy Binay and Sonny Angara) on May 16, and another
three (Bam Aquino, Koko Pimentel and Sonny Trillanes) on the next day, May 17.
Rule and exception.
The Comelec was reported to be trying to finish the official canvass at a late hour on the
third day, yesterday, May 18 (past my deadline for this column), or today, and to
proclaim the last three winners (Cynthia Villar, JV Ejercito and possibly Gringo Honasan).
This final canvass may moot the prematurity of the two earlier proclamations, but it will
not lessen their baselessness and illegality at their inception.
It merely raises new questions: No one was chasing the Comelec, why the indecent
haste? Why rush to proclaim without legal or factual basis? Why not wait for two days,
just two days, and then proclaim all 12 legally and unquestionably?
Let us dig deeper.
The entrenched legal and commonsensical rule is that winners can be proclaimed only
after all ballots have been officially canvassed. The exception to this rule is when the
leading candidate(s) posts an insurmountable lead, that is, when the remaining
uncanvassed ballots will not adversely affect the results.
The Comelec meticulously and correctly invoked this rule and exception when it instructed
the provincial and city boards of canvassers to proclaim the local winners. It should apply
the same standard to its own proclamations.
To understand the exception, imagine that a total of 50 million ballots were cast in an
election, of which 90 percent or 45 million were canvassed. Imagine further that each of
the first nine senatorial candidates obtained more than 20 million votes while each of the
other candidates had less than 15 million.
Here, even if the remaining 10 percent (or 5 million) uncanvassed votes were added to
each of the other candidates, none of them could overtake the nine. In these imagined
facts, the exception applies and the first nine may be proclaimed.
Look now at the real facts.
When the six candidates were proclaimed on May 16, the official canvass of the Comelec
covered only 72 out of the 304 certificates of canvass (COCs). These 72 COCs represented
just a little more than 13 million of the country’s 52 million registered voters.
Definitely, then, the unreported votes are several times more than the canvassed votes.
Even if only 70 percent of the registered voters actually voted, still the uncanvassed
ballots will easily swamp the canvassed ones.
Hence, the exception cannot apply.
Belatedly, the Comelec alleges that its two earlier proclamations are justified by so-called
“group canvass reports.” In my long years as a lawyer, this is my first time to hear of
these electoral instruments.
22
WITH DUE RESPECT
PREMATURE, IMPRUDENT AND ILLEGAL
Saturday 18 May 2013
by ARTEMIO R. PANGANIBAN
http://opinion.inquirer.net/52851/premature-imprudent-and-illegal
(continuation)
In any event, law and settled jurisprudence require official COCs, not any other
documents, as bases of senatorial proclamations.
If the Comelec wants to change its rules of proclamation even at the risk of offending
jurisprudence, it is required by law to first publish its new rules and wait for the
mandatory lapse of seven days after publication before it can use the new rules.
Legal enigma.
Clearly, then, the first two proclamations were premature and illegal.
Worse, if the final canvass did not confirm their victory, not even the Comelec or the
Supreme Court could unseat them. Because once proclamation is made, “the sole judge,”
says the Constitution, “of all contests relating to the election, returns and qualifications” of
senators is the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) composed of six senators and three
Supreme Court justices.
The SET can act only after the Senate is convened in late July. By that time, the nine
would be sitting in the Senate. On the other hand, not all those who obtained enough
votes can sit because the Senate has only 24 members. Then, the country would be faced
with an undeserved legal enigma.
At this point, I hope readers realize that the prematurity and illegality of the two earlier
proclamations, unless upheld and cured by the final canvass, could bring unwarranted and
unnecessary legal consequences.
Baseless and premature proclamations should never be repeated, especially during the
presidential election in 2016. Otherwise, they could destabilize and bring unintended
consequences on our democracy.
Shining moment.
If and when the proclamation of the nine is confirmed by the final canvass, I believe they
should be given new certificates of proclamation, containing the legal justification for their
victory—namely, the correct number of votes and rank they garnered to avoid giving
them the dubious distinction of being the only senators in our country’s history with
premature, imprudent and illegal proclamations.
I cannot close this piece without applauding the courage and wisdom of Nancy Binay and
Koko Pimentel in refusing to participate in the tainted proclamation rites.
Pimentel labeled the proclamation rites as improper, arguing that candidates should not
only win the elections fairly but also strictly observe the law.
Kudos also to Romulo Macalintal for calling public attention to this legal impasse and for
asking the proclaimed senators to “return or surrender their certificates of proclamation …
as a shining moment… of the democratic process.” And I dare say that Macalintal’s
exemplary advocacy is his own shining moment for the rule of law and democracy.
23
NAMFREL QUESTIONS
COMELEC ON UNACCOUNTED ERS
By Edd K. Usman
19 May 2013
http://www.mb.com.ph/article.php?aid=12678&sid=1&subid=1#.UZhKxEqneXk
Manila, Philippines --- Where are the unaccounted 8.5 million votes from 18,504 election
returns (ERs)?
The National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) yesterday asked this
question, and many others, to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) even as it renewed
its concern over the manner by which the May 13 election was held.
Namfrel reminded Comelec that it “is enjoined to share with the public the status” of the
unaccounted ERs, such as whether the Compact Flash (CF) cards were brought to the
National Board of Canvassers (MBOC), or the ballots counted manually at precinct level
and then an ER was prepared, or manual tabulations were made at municipal or provincial
canvassing sites.
The group said the transmission of ERs to the poll body’s transparency server stalled five
days after the elections, with the figures at 76.3273 as of 5:41 p.m. on May 17.
As a result, Namfrel said “a lot of apprehension is going around over Comelec’s plan on
how it will account for the remaining 23.6727 percent missing ERs.”
It noted further that the proclamation on Thursday and Friday evenings of nine leading
bets for the Senate was based on “untenable figures.”
Namfrel said Comelec made the proclamation anchored on 117 out of the expected 304
Certificates of Canvass (CoCs).
The group said a CoC summarizes the total of ERs of a province or of a chartered city,
adding that CoCs are the basis for the proclamation of winning candidates.
Namfrel noted further the reasons for the low turnout of CoCs reaching the National Board
of Canvassers (NBOC). Comelec serves as the NBOC.
“The question begging to be answered is, what is the plan of Comelec to account to the
public the remaining 18,054 ERs, estimated to contain at least 8.5 million votes?” the poll
watchdog asked.
At the same time, Namfrel said its “System Group is wondering how come there were still
transmission of ERs coming in four days after voting closed on Monday.
“From where are these ER figures being sent, when PCOS machines are supposed to have
been sealed by this time?” Namfrel asked.
The election watchdog, headed by Corazon de la Paz-Bernardo, national chairman, noted
that telecommunications companies have already pointed to the availability of signals in
all the sites. “If and when the transmission to the transparency server resumes, from
where are these ERs being sent? Are the contingency plans for this event (if any) being
followed?” the group asked.
Other figures cited by Namfrel showed that for the latest election, there were 78,166
clustered precincts with a precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machine each; 1,640 cities
and municipalities; 80 provinces; and 304 expected CoCs from 80 provinces, 26 chartered
and highly urbanized cities, one local absentee voting, and 197 overseas absentee voting.
Namfrel cited further that of the country’s 17 regions, the Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao (ARMM) emerged with the lowest percentage of ERs transmitted at 34.9 percent
out of 3,124 ERs; followed by Region IX at 62.2 percent of 2,968 ERs; and the third
Cordillera Autonomous Region (CAR) with 62.31 percent from 1,828 ERs.
Namfrel said all is not lost, citing “two remaining safeguards” for the country’s second
automated election system (AES).
24
NAMFREL QUESTIONS
COMELEC ON UNACCOUNTED ERS
By Edd K. Usman
19 May 2013
http://www.mb.com.ph/article.php?aid=12678&sid=1&subid=1#.UZhKxEqneXk
(continuation)
These are the result of the parallel manual count (PMC) through a clear methodology, and
the results of the after-count random manual audit (RMA) in 234 randomly chosen
precincts in congressional districts of the same total.
Namfrel said the job falls on the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV).
“The public awaits,” Namfrel said, apparently referring to PPCRV’s job.
Earlier, Namfrel spokesperson Damas G. Magbual, said the delay in the transmission of
the poll’s results rendered the process susceptible to fraud.
“One hundred votes in the provincial level can become 1,000 votes in the national. It has
happened,” said Magbual, adding that “the least time involved in the precinct in
consolidation of votes to the national level, plus the least human intervention is better.
The count will have greater integrity.”
“When you delay the consolidation of aggregated results, then you are susceptible to
potential manipulation. But don’t get me wrong, I did not say it is happening,” Magbual
hastened to add.
Namfrel recommended junking the PCOS in the 2016 presidential election.
“Forget the PCOS,” said Magbual.
“The PCOS should be history since they failed and malfunctioned. It is not true that only
250 PCOSs have malfunctioned. Thirty percent PCOS have not yet transmitted and we are
talking of potentially 11 million votes,” he added.
“For as long as the delay lasts longer and longer, the credibility of the election grows
weaker and weaker,” Magbual said.
Related developments:
The May 13 midterm election was much worse than the 2010 elections, a poll watchdog
group said. The Automated Election System (AES) Watch cited the many errors recorded
in this year’s polls. “By committing more errors than those recorded in 2010, by making
arbitrary and highly-irregular decisions during canvassing, and proclaiming presumed
winning candidates prematurely the Comelec has turned the second automated elections
from bad to worse – a technology and political disaster,” said AES in a statement. Aside
from Comelec’s non-compliance of the election law and the technical glitches, the AES
also noted an unprecedented large-scale vote buying as well as political clans becoming
even more entrenched with a bigger number of their members being fielded in extensive
areas and perpetuating themselves in power thereafter.
Vice President Jejomar C. Binay lamented on Friday night the “problematic” PCOS
machines during last Monday’s elections. Speaking during the 106th Annual Convention
and Scientific Meetings of the Philippine Medical Association (PMA) at the historic
landmark Manila Hotel, Binay aired his dismay over alleged irregularities with the use of
PCOS machines by the Comelec.
“Meron din pala kayong Comelec. Sana walang problema sa PCOS machine,” Binay
jokingly told PMA members who had just elected their new set of officers. In yet another
ad lib, Binay told the doctors who are aspiring to run for public office to wait for PCOS
machines to be phased out before running for public office.
The Comelec may have to issue another certificate of proclamation (COP) to the nine
winning senators that they just proclaimed in the past two days. Election lawyer Romulo
Macalintal, in an interview, said the poll body should issue another certificate to the nine
in order to legitimize the process.
(With reports from JC Bello Ruiz and Leslie Aquino)
25
EDITORIAL
GLITCHES
Monday 20 May 2013
http://www.philstar.com/opinion/2013/05/20/944064/editorial-glitches
The Commission on Elections says the precinct count optical scan machines may make yet
another comeback in the general elections in 2016. New machines are costly, Comelec
officials say, and besides the PCOS machines provided by Smartmatic have performed
well with only minor glitches in 2010 and in the just-concluded midterm elections.
The glitches involved thousands of PCOS machines, and the number is not something to
sneeze at. Before election day, Comelec officials said they had factored in potential
glitches and had put thousands of PCOS machines on standby for deployment to areas
where glitches would be reported. Generators were also placed on standby in case of
blackouts, although the Comelec emphasized that the PCOS machines could run on
batteries.
Election day was not completely blackout-free. Meanwhile, the PCOS machines have been
blamed for the slow transmission of results. Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr.
proclaimed all the 12 winning candidates for senator based on fewer than half of the 304
certificates of canvass, opening himself and the poll body to potential legal challenges.
A similar situation cannot prevail in 2016, when the nation picks a new president and vice
president. From the moment the results are announced until the official proclamation, the
mandate of the next president should be unassailable. A smooth transfer of power
ensures the stability of governance of the incoming administration. The smooth transfer of
power starts with credible elections.
Questions raised on the conduct of the 2004 elections led to persistent instability
throughout the presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, affecting her governance and
many other aspects of national life. Seeing the problems that have cropped up in this
year’s elections, steps must be undertaken to prevent serious problems from undermining
the credibility of the 2016 vote.
26
EDITORIAL
TIME TO GO
22 May 2013
http://manilastandardtoday.com/2013/05/22/time-to-go/
NEITHER subtlety nor wit will work on Commission on Elections Chairman Sixto Brillantes,
so let us try the direct approach. Mr. Chairman, it is time to quit and let a more
competent and ethical person repair the damage you have wrought at the Comelec. From
the start, your appointment to the top position of the commission was dubious, given your
previous career as an election lawyer, with numerous connections to the same politicians
– or their relatives – who ran for office this month. Thanks to you, 12 new senators take
their office this month under a cloud of doubt and distrust. How could they have been
proclaimed, when 30 percent of the vote had not yet been counted? How could you, in all
good conscience, declare that this would no longer affect the outcome of the elections?
How could you justify the days-long delays in the transmission of the results, when your
entire argument for using the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines was to deliver
credible election results quickly? When that proved impossible, did you simply make up
the figures to cover up your utter failure to deliver on this promise? Was it in your
mandate to defy election laws? Such certainly seemed to be the case when you refused to
comply with the law to make the source code of the PCOS machines available for public
review – until it was too late, mere days before the actual elections. In your short time as
elections commissioner, you have also debased the notion of public service. You did so by
saying in a widely publicized interview that you had wished to be appointed ambassador
to an East European nation as a reward for supporting President Benigno Aquino III in the
2010 elections. You even said you wanted to be assigned to a country where there were
few Filipinos – indicating you wished to enjoy the perks of being an ambassador, without
the attendant hard work that we, as taxpayers, expect of all our public servants. You also
displayed incredible arrogance in trying to silence your many critics, threatening to sue
officers of an election watchdog group that questioned the wisdom of your choice of
automated election systems, and actually turning off the microphone on another critic who
dared to speak out against you during a public hearing. Is this the straight path of which
your patron, President Aquino speaks? Does the administration mantra refer to a direct
road bulldozed over the legitimate objections of its critics? Given the fiasco over which
you presided, is it any surprise that so many election watchdog groups have demanded
your resignation? One of those groups, Kontra Daya, has accused you of squandering
billions of pesos on defective counting machines, then conspiring with your supplier to
cover up the widespread failures and transmission problems. Another group, Automated
Election Systems Watch, has urged you to stop harassing your critics with threats of
charges and address instead issues raised against you. Against this backdrop of failure,
we marvel at your description of the recent polls as “one of the best elections in the
country’s history.” If for nothing else, your inability to discern reality from fantasy is
reason enough to step down. And when your patron finally gives you that cushy job you
wanted all along, it better not be on our tax pesos. You are simply not worth the money.
27
“HIGH CRIMES” & “BETRAYAL OF PUBLIC TRUST” 13
54. It was COMELEC in 2013 committing unpardonable blunder
in a scale bigger than 2010’s: safeguards set in law providing for voter
verifiability, source code review, valid digital signature, secured CF cards,
and other minimum protects summarily set aside without an apology.
55. The PCOS technology, paid for by public coffers to the tune of
several billions of pesos for purposes of transmitting election results
within a few hours, or at least within a few days, took more than a week
to accomplish half the job, and is not yet complete until now. 14 Worse, in
all electronic transmissions from the PCOS machines, there is a total
absence of digital signatures. 15
56. Late in the evening of 13 May 2013, while Smartmatic
President Alberto Castro Rico was in the PPCRV Command Center,
PPCRV boasted about its speed in quick counts. Yet even without
considering the mathematical impossibility of tallying more than 12
million votes from only around a thousand precincts, the proportions of
votes for winning candidates observed over a span of seven days are
truly mind-boggling:
Percentages % as of 13 May 2013
9.57%
Team PNoy
UNA
30.93%
59.50%
↓
13
Constitution, Article XI, Section 2
14
Annex “M”
15
Annex “N”
OTHERS
28
AFTER 7 DAYS @ 294,683,224 VOTES
↓↓
Percentages % as of 21 May 2013
9.56%
Team PNoy
UNA
30.82%
59.63%
OTHERS
57.
In real life, election results come in like unpredictable
waves, sometimes slow, sometimes fast, depending on many fluctuating
factors like popularity or unpopularity of a candidate in different places.
The figures above are truly puzzling, because they appeared to have
followed the compass of a deterministic formula!
MORE DOUBTS RAISED
ABOUT POLL RESULTS
Thursday 23 May 2013
Jerome Aning
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/413769/more-doubts-raised-about-poll-results
Information technology (IT) experts have observed a strange “pattern” of votes
obtained by administration, opposition and independent senatorial candidates in
the May 13 elections. The IT experts have been linking with election watchdogs
throughout the country to validate the so-called “60-30-10” pattern in which
senatorial candidates from Team PNoy consistently obtained 60 percent, those
from the United Nationalist Alliance 30 percent and the rest 10 percent of the
votes cast in various precincts. The experts, however, are not making claims that
the results were manipulated. Neither have they accused the Commission on
Elections (Comelec), its automation service provider Smartmatic Corp. or any
individual or group of conspiracy. The “60-30-10” theory was attributed to Ateneo
professor Lex Muga, who studied the senatorial tallies from the first to the 16th
canvass reports released by the Comelec sitting as the national board of
canvassers (NBOC). On the average, Muga said the 12 Team PNoy candidates
gained 59.12 percent, the nine UNA candidates 31.36 percent and the rest 9.7
percent.
Interesting pattern.
“Note that the COCs (certificates of canvass) are supposed to be received
randomly. But we still have an interesting pattern,” he said in a public status
29
update on his Facebook account on Sunday. Muga said COCs from different
provinces received by the NBOC should not generate the same pattern of votes for
the three groups of candidates but should show some variation. In a television
interview, the Ateneo professor said one possible explanation of the pattern was
that the Team PNoy campaign had been so effective that its candidates practically
won in every province and UNA was left without a bulwark.
Effective campaign.
“My impression is that the campaign of Team PNoy for a 12-0 sweep nationwide
was effective. I don’t know how they did it but it was effective. UNA [candidates]
had no stronghold. [Their votes] were scattered,” he said. Blogger Conrad Miguel
Gozalo (www.radarsweep.com) also published his analysis of the voting pattern,
which was similar to Muga’s. Gozalo, however, used the senatorial votes in 11
intervals released beginning about 10 p.m. of May 13 by the news website
Rappler.com, which has a mirror transparency server as the Comelec’s official
media partner in the elections. “After seeing the outcome of our work, I was
initially convinced that the allegations of a [60-30-10 pattern] were indeed true
[based on] our own findings),” Gozalo said. He called on other IT experts to use
his data to find out if there were other trends. Pablo Manalastas, IT consultant of
the Center for People Empowerment in Governance, said the 60-30-10 pattern
could be proven by checking the smaller populations of voters, such as precinct
and municipal results. “If in those results you see a 60-30-10 pattern, then there
is probably a conspiracy. But if you see wild fluctuations that are attributable to
differing local preferences, then there may be no conspiracy,” he said.
irregularities in the recent automated elections. “We call on the government to
create an independent investigative body to look into the automated election
system that was plagued by numerous technical glitches that might have
disenfranchised millions of voters,” Villanueva, who lost in the senatorial elections,
said in a statement.
MORE DOUBTS RAISED
ABOUT POLL RESULTS
Thursday 23 May 2013
Jerome Aning
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/413769/more-doubts-raised-about-poll-results
(CONTINUATION)
Law of large numbers.
Manalastas also recalled the law of large numbers in statistics, which describes the result of
performing the same experiment many times. According to the law, the average of the results from
a large number of trials should be close to the expected value and will tend to become closer as
more trials are performed. “Our election is like some big experiment in which the electoral choices
of the people are determined. Naturally, the bigger the number of votes canvassed, the closer you
get to the true will of the people,” Manalastas said. He said the correct test to determine a
conspiracy was not to check the national averages to see how close to 60-30-10 one could get
“because this is exactly what the law of large numbers tells us that we will get.”
Precinct comparison.
The more correct indicator of a conspiracy, he said, was “if we get the same 60-30-10 figures in a
precinct-by-precinct comparison, provided that the precinct figures were used to get the national
canvass.” Muga agreed, saying the Comelec should release the complete ERs (election returns),
which are electronic precinct-based results. About 23 percent of the ERs failed to enter the servers
of the Comelec, of its citizens’ arm (the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting) and of
Rappler due to malfunctioning precinct count optical scan machines and transmission problems.
“There is a need to study more thoroughly the 2013 election data. I hope Comelec will make these
public 100 percent. We need to study the different ERs. It has four versions. The printed copies,
those sent to municipal BOCs, those sent to central servers and those sent to the transparency
servers. First question: ‘Are they the same for each precinct?’” Manalastas said.
Comelec to study pattern.
30
On Thursday, Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. told reporters that the Comelec’s IT
department was studying Muga’s analysis. “I’m having our people study it to see if it’s true,
although initially, it seems there is that kind of pattern. We’re still checking it and looking into the
basis. We’ll not make a conclusion yet. They said there was a pattern. I don’t know if it’s a pattern.
We’ll wait for our IT department’s report,” Brillantes said. Lingganay Han Kamatuoran, media group
of the Eastern Visayas chapter of the militant Promotion of Church Peoples Response, said the
pattern was also evident in the Tacloban City COC, which represents 189 clustered precincts. “The
total senatorial votes in Tacloban indicated an interestingly similar 60-30-10 pattern of votesharing. Specifically, Team PNoy bets enjoyed a 60.90-percent share of total senatorial votes while
UNA bets had 29.66 percent and Makabayan [and] all other independent candidates got 9.44
percent of senatorial votes,” the group said in a public status update on its Facebook account.
Amazing’ Bohol.
Rick Bahague of the Computer Professionals Union also shared on Facebook a chart of the Bohol
COC showing voting results from 18 towns, which he described as “amazing.” “Boholanos seem to
have been genetically modified. They voted the same. The rank of the senators is almost the same
in all the towns,” he said in a public status update. In another update, he said “[t]he teachers
should spank the voters in the municipalities of Bohol because they apparently copied from one
another.” Bahague created another chart using COCs from Eastern, Central and Western Visayas
sent to the NBOC. He said the pattern was the same, which he likened to “shirt stripes.”
Independent probe
Evangelical leader Bro. Eddie Villanueva, meanwhile, urged the Aquino administration to create a
“truth commission” to investigate the alleged irregularities in the recent automated elections. “We
call on the government to create an independent investigative body to look into the automated
election system that was plagued by numerous technical glitches that might have disenfranchised
millions of voters,” Villanueva, who lost in the senatorial elections, said in a statement.
With a report from Philip C. Tubeza
EDITORIAL
BRILLANTES’ TANTRUMS
2013 / 05 / 24 /10:44 PM
http://opinion.inquirer.net/53257/brillantes-tantrums
So he finally admitted it. The number of precinct count optical scan machines that had
experienced transmission problems, said Commission on Elections Chair Sixto Brillantes
Jr. last Thursday, wasn’t in the hundreds but in the thousands—18,000, or 24-25 percent
of the around 78,000 machines deployed in the midterm elections. Interestingly, that
number roughly dovetailed with the figure cited by poll watchdog Automated Election
System Watch in its statement on May 18, which noted that “four days after this year’s
election, 18,187 clustered precincts or 23 percent of the total number failed to transmit
election returns, affecting if not potentially disenfranchising 8.6 million votes.” That
distressingly high number of machine failures is a far cry from the assurance confidently
given by the Comelec on Election Day: that the PCOS failure rate would be at most 2
percent, or about 1,560 out of the 78,000 machines—a rate that the poll body declared
was quite reasonable and acceptable. Earlier, Brillantes also had to admit that some
compact flash cards containing the encrypted election results that were transmitted to
Comelec servers were damaged or corrupted. Asked how these could have been
destroyed, his answer was: “Sinasawsaw sa tubig, nilulublub sa tinta, scratches, hindi ko
alam. I don’t know.” There, in a nutshell, is the biggest stumbling block to any effort at
ascertaining whether the midterm elections were indeed clean, fair, honest and
transparent, or the product of some pervasive sophisticated skullduggery that only the
most tech-savvy among us can grasp. Brillantes’ flippant, dismissive, often hostile attitude
toward any attempt by concerned citizens or civic groups to inquire into the manner and
outcome of the elections has been most exasperating, if not downright dangerous. Anyone
trying to delve deeper into the conduct of the Comelec, or to independently appraise the
performance of the automated system it had imposed on the public at enormous cost and
despite widespread doubt about its efficacy, has been met with Brillantes’ by-nowpatented hissy fit. The man has threatened to file charges against critics, is purveying
stories of a “conspiracy” to smear and bring down the Comelec, and has swatted away all
31
questions about poll irregularities as coming from sore losers, or, in the case of former
Comelec commissioner and IT expert Gus Lagman, as mere sour grapes by someone with
alleged vested interests in an alternate technology that the poll body had rejected in favor
of Smartmatic’s PCOS machines. It may be that Brillantes is right in his suspicions—but so
far none of his answers addresses the main issues. If the machines had conked out by the
thousands, how did it happen, and what could the effect have been on the final election
tallies? If the CF cards were deliberately corrupted or destroyed through immersion in
water or ink, who might have been responsible, and for whose benefit? Which part of the
myriad problems the Comelec began encountering even before the close of polling
precincts last May 13 pointed to fraud, to the systematic undermining of the system—and
which part pointed to natural, explainable causes, if any (such as Brillantes’ complaints
that signal problems by telecom firms were the chief cause of transmission delays, a
charge the firms have denied)? Who knows? Instead of trying to find out, Brillantes has
invariably chosen to go ballistic. Similarly, now that an Ateneo math professor has raised
what looks like a “60-30-10” pattern in the election results, Brillantes’ response has been
to describe the pattern as mere “trending,” with nothing unusual to it. He did add that the
Comelec would look into the numbers. But, with no details or timetable to his promise, the
assurance seemed more like an afterthought, lacking the conviction and the urgency one
would expect from the nation’s chief election overseer. Brillantes needs no reminding that
he swore to the task of making sure not only that every vote is counted, but also that no
stone will be left unturned to get to the bottom of election fraud—to punish the
perpetrators, but more importantly, to understand how the deed was done, in order to
prevent it from ever happening again. Throwing tantrums every time an inconvenient new
question is asked about the elections that he said the Comelec was “99.99 percent” ready
for is certainly not the way to do it.
58. Despite this, Respondents continued to tell
brazen lies,
claiming that only 258 PCOS machines were defective, contrary to official
reports (56 in Ilocos + 215 in Region VII = 269 defective) and independent
reports (“1,063 reports of PCOS machine problems as of late afternoon of
election day” according to GMA Network & AMA Education System). 16
59. Later on, COMELEC would also admit to about 18,000 of
80,000 PCOS machines failing to transmit election returns. And for this
reason, it was forced to transport precinct paraphernalia with the
rewritable CF cards to canvassing centers, exposing them to the risk of
card alterations and machine switching.
60. The list of terrible woes continues: an inexplicable statistical
anomaly of 12 million votes surging from just 1,000 precincts at the start
of transmission; defective modems, power outages, ballot rejections,
discrepancies between PCOS and manual counts plagued the partial
random manual audit.
61. Indeed, the biggest casualty in the stubborn and inexplicable
insistence by Respondents - impeachable COMELEC Commissioners
and non-impeachable COMELEC officers - to use the highly-problematic
PCOS technology in the May 13, 2013 mid-term elections is the sanctity
and integrity of the ballot.
16
Annex “K”
32
62. Complainants hereby adopt by reference and incorporate in
this Joint Supplemental Request for Investigation and Complaint Affidavit
the grounds discussed in their Original Complaint of June 11, 2013 for
the filing of charges of violations of RA 3019 and other relevant criminal
statutes against non-impeachable COMELEC officers and their
conspirators from SMARTMATIC-ASIA PACIFIC and SMARTMATIC-TIM,
particularly those discussed in pp. 31-37 of the said Original Complaint.
63. In addition, Respondent COMELEC chairperson Brillantes
violated the Constitution when he granted himself and six fellow
Commissioners
tens of millions of pesos in “intelligence funds,”
purportedly realigned from the COMELEC’s 2012 savings, and intended
for , among other things, spying on civil society election watchdogs whom
he called “troublemakers.”
64. The realignment violates the express provisions of the General
Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2012, which specifically prohibits the
Commission from having or otherwise using intelligence funds.
65. It also violates the Constitution’s Article VI (The Legislative
Department), Section 25-(5), which states: “No law shall be passed
authorizing the transfer of appropriations; however, the President, the
President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and the heads of Constitutional
Commissions may, by law, be authorized to augment any item in the
general appropriations law for their respective offices from savings in
other items of their respective appropriations.”
66. This is because no law has been passed allowing the
COMELEC chairperson to augment the intelligence budgeting of his
constitutional commission.
67. The foregoing PCOS-related acts committed by Respondents
COMELEC
Commissioners
and
officers,
in
conspiracy
with
SMARTMATIC-ASIA PACIFIC and SMARTMATIC-TIM corporate directors
and officers, are declared unlawful and made punishable under RA 3019
as well as under the relevant provisions of the Revised Penal Code and
other special laws.
68. Considering all of the above circumstances, there are strong
grounds to charge all of the Respondents who are non-impeachable
COMELEC officers and those who are SMARTMATIC-ASIA PACIFIC
and/or SMARTMATIC-TIM corporate directors and/or officers
with
violation of :
Section 3 (e) of RA 3019, for “[c]ausing any undue injury to any
party, including the Government, or giving any private party any
unwarranted benefits, advantage or preference in the discharge of
33
his official, administrative or judicial functions through manifest
partiality, evident bad faith, or gross inexcusable negligence.
69. Further, there are strong grounds to charge all the
Respondents --- non-impeachable COMELEC officers --- with violation of:
Section 3 (a) of RA 3019 for “[p]ersuading, inducing or influencing
another public officer to perform an act constituting a violation of
rules and regulations duly promulgated by competent authority or
an offense in connection with the official duties of the latter, or
allowing himself to be persuaded, induced, or influenced to commit
such violation or offense.”
70. The same non-impeachable COMELEC officers are also
administratively liable for their gross negligence and/or grave
misconduct in connection with their complicity in the approval and
implementation of the highly problematic and highly disadvantageous
PCOS
and
PCOS-related
contracts.
Indeed,
their
willing
omissions/commissions
also constitute grave misconduct under
administrative law, defined as “intentional wrongdoing or deliberate
violation of a rule of law or standard of behavior” in connection with “the
performance of official functions and duties of a public officer.”
71. Moreover, there are strong grounds to charge all the
Respondents who are COMELEC Commissioners upon their resignation,
retirement or removal from public office with violation of Art. 208 of the
Revised Penal Code, which provides for a penalty of prision correccional
upon a public official who in dereliction of his or her duties, “shall
maliciously refrain from instituting prosecution or the punishment of
violators of the law or shall tolerate the commission of offenses.”
72. There are also strong grounds to charge the Respondents
who are private citizens for conspiring with the Respondents who are
public officials in committing the criminal violation of laws as abovediscussed.
73. We therefore jointly execute this Joint Supplemental Request
for Investigation and Complaint-Affidavit to attest to the truth of the
foregoing and to cause the prosecution of herein Respondents for
violations of the above-mentioned provisions of various criminal statutes.
PRAYER
As to the Respondents whose removal can be done only
impeachment, Complainants pray that this Honorable OFFICE OF
by
THE
34
OMBUDSMAN conduct an investigation on their culpability for
impeachment, in accordance with Section 22 of the Ombudsman Act.
As to the Respondents whose removal can be done directly by the
Honorable OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSMAN, complainants pray for immediate
issuance of preventive suspension orders to save evidence from
irretrievable loss and/or preserve evidence from irreparable damage
while it carries out the proceedings in this case.
Affiants further sayeth naught.
FR. JOE DIZON
SISTER MARY JOHN MANANZAN, O.S.B.
RODOLFO NOEL I. LOZADA JR.
HECTOR A. BARRIOS
GREGORIO T. FABROS
EVITA L. JIMENEZ
ANA LEA ESCRESA-COLINA
DR. PABLO R. MANALASTAS
35
VERIFICATION & CERTIFICATE OF NON-FORUM SHOPPING
We, the Complainants, under oath, hereby state that:
1)
2)
3)
4)
We are the Complainants in this case and we caused the preparation of
this Joint Supplemental Request for Investigation and ComplaintAffidavit;
The allegations herein are true and correct of our personal knowledge
and on the basis of copies of documents and records in our possession;
We did not commence any other action or proceeding involving the same
issues in the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, or any other tribunal
or agency;
To the best of our knowledge and belief, no such action or proceeding is
pending in the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, or any other
tribunal or agency; and if we should thereafter learn that a similar action
or proceeding has been filed or is pending before the Supreme Court, the
Court of Appeals, or any other tribunal or agency; we undertake to report
that fact within five days therefrom to the Office of the Ombudsman.
NAME & SIGNATURE
COMPETENT EVIDENCE OF
IDENTITY
FR. JOE DIZON
SISTER MARY JOHN MANANZAN, O.S.B.
RODOLFO NOEL I. LOZADA JR.
HECTOR A. BARRIOS
GREGORIO T. FABROS
EVITA L. JIMENEZ
ANA LEA ESCRESA-COLINA
DR. PABLO R. MANALASTAS
SUBSCRIBED and SWORN to before me this 18th of JUNE 2013 in the OFFICE of
the OMBUDSMAN (National Capital Region) . I hereby certify that I personally
examined the Aaffiants and that I am satisfied that they understood and voluntarily
executed this affidavit.
36
ANNEX A
Damning evidence against Smartmatic PCOS
FROM A DISTANCE
by Carmen N. Pedrosa
Saturday 10 November 2013
http://www.philstar.com/opinion/2012/11/10/864977/damning-evidence-against-smartmatic-pcos
It is not easy for voters to understand computer gobbledygook. They are easy prey to those
pushing for fraudulent machine elections. In all my articles on Smartmatic PCOS I have tried to
translate the technical problems in simple terms: For a vote to be completed, whether manual or
automated, there are two acts, one is the vote itself and the second is how it is counted. If the
vote was separated from the counting process, we did not vote. That is what happened in May
2010. Worse, all the ways through which we could prove this separation took place was closed to
us. We don’t really know how the machines counted the votes.
Automatic Elections Watch (AES) has put together computer experts who have pointed out the
errors by the machines. All the answer the group got from Comelec is that these have been
corrected. This is a lie. We now know this because of the Smartmatic case against Dominion.
Therefore Smartmatic cannot correct the errors. It can only do so if Dominion, the supplier of the
technology, cooperates with them. All the facts on just how the May 2010 were conducted is
coming out now. It does not come from local computer experts or aggrieved losing candidates. It
comes from the ongoing suit between Smartmatic and Dominion. AES Watch has a copy of the
legal suit.
AES has issued the following statement:
“It appears that the US-based Dominion Voting Systems, which supplied the election technology to
Smartmatic for the Philippine elections, terminated its 2009 license agreement with the latter on
May 23, 2012. As a result, the termination denies Smartmatic access to technical support and
assistance as well as Dominion’s proprietary source code and other “escrowed materials” which are
vital to correcting and “enhancing” the PCOS system upon request of Comelec in March this year,
AES’ Professor Bobby Tuazon said in a statement.” With the information coming from the suit, the
group urged the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee (JCOC) for a formal investigation. This
can only be done if Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago takes up the cause to show why
“Smartmatic company will not be able to correct its voting system’s deficiencies” and therefore
should not be used again in the coming elections. “Failure to correct the PCOS system’s program
errors and bugs may doom the scheduled 2013 mid-term elections,” Tuazon said.
Dominion is the real owner of the election technology — a fact Smartmatic hid during the 2010
elections. With the contract terminated all claims of Smartmatic that they corrected the errors is
untrue. It cannot correct the PCOS errors and defects that are causing erratic counting, among
other problems.
It took a legal fight between Dominion and Smartmatic to get at the facts of just what happened in
2010. Smartmatic has had to admit system errors of its technology in the compact flash card (CFC)
fiasco during the May 3, 2010 final testing and sealing (FTS) or a week before the May 2010
elections in the Philippines. It blamed Dominion’s software for failing to correctly read and record
the paper ballots. The Venezuelan company accused Dominion of breaking the 2009 license
agreement by failing to deliver “fully functional technology” for the 2010 Philippine elections, and
failing to place in escrow the required source code, hardware design, and manufacturing data.
This is an explicit admission by Smartmatic of the “failure of its system to function fully, resulting
in glaring errors, most of which were documented” by CenPEG and AES Watch in 2010, Dr. Pablo
Manalastas, AES Watch co-convener and CenPEG Fellow for IT said. “Does Dominion’s failure
automatically imply Smartmatic’s failure to do the escrow required by the election law (RA 9369)?”
Manalastas added. “Do these actions by Smartmatic constitute a criminal intent to cheat, a criminal
intent to avoid its contractual obligations with Comelec and with the Filipino people?” he asked.
A congressional committee should probe why Smartmatic has been saying its system was 100
percent perfect contrary to the scientific studies of Filipino IT experts and scholars. Through the
suit we now know that the election technology used in the 2010 national elections was fraught with
program errors and deficiencies — which CenPEG, along with the broad citizens election watchdog
AES Watch have raised since 2009.
37
ANNEX A-1
Damning evidence against Smartmatic PCOS
FROM A DISTANCE
by Carmen N. Pedrosa
Saturday 10 November 2013
http://www.philstar.com/opinion/2012/11/10/864977/damning-evidence-against-smartmatic-pcos
(continuation)
“In the absence of a serious concern from Comelec — which has actually been promoting
Smartmatic in a show of partisanship — as well as Congress, this issue and other concerns have
prompted CenPEG and AES Watch to sue both Smartmatic and the poll body before the Supreme
Court twice. The second lawsuit - filed summer this year — is over Comelec’s decision to purchase
Smartmatic’s voting machines against the strong advice of the Comelec Advisory Council (CAC).
The Delaware lawsuit was the opening needed by concerned citizens. Moreover, the original
licensing agreement between the two companies only allows Smartmatic the use of the technology
in the Philippines in 2010. There is no clear explicit provision whether its use is allowed in the 2013
elections.” And finally, why should we allow foreign companies to manage our own election — a
sovereignty issue? So Chairman Sixto Brillantes should not be so quick to say that Filipinos should
emulate the Americans and be mature by conceding to winners quickly after elections. What!? All
things being equal that may not be too much to ask. In 2010 it was more unequal than it has ever
been. Brillantes rubs more salt to the wounds of candidates who lost in dubious circumstances of
the first automated election in the Philippines. If there are concerned citizens still fighting for
righting the wrongs committed in the botched up automated elections, they are fighting for a
worthwhile cause. It is about the sovereignty of our elections. It is not about conceding defeat but
whether we should give up our votes to machines manipulated by vested interests. This is
unconscionable and will destroy the very foundation of our republican democracy. Moreover, the
Comelec has not only stonewalled questions from computer experts both local and foreign about
the Smartmatic-PCOs it is pushing that the same crooked automatic electoral system be used again
in 2013 and in all future elections. That would be catastrophic. It will be the end of the
enfranchisement of Filipino citizens. Their votes will be at the mercy of those who have set up the
system for their own agenda. The Comelec chief presumes we had a normal election last 2010.
38
ANNEX B
COMELEC TEST RUN MARRED BY GLITCHES
Sunday 03 February 2013
http://manilastandardtoday.com/2013/02/03/comelec-test-run-marred-by-glitches/
The Commission on Elections on Saturday previewed the May 2013 elections by holding mock polls
in key areas nationwide and officials liked the outcome.
Chairman Sixto Brillantes said the mock polls went smoothly except for hitches. “Mock elections
outside of Manila have ended, (weꞌre) still waiting for the complete results. Except for a glitch in
one precinct, mock elections went smoothly. No major was problem reported so far,”•he said.
Voting machines failed to accept the ballots at the University of the Philippines Integrated School in
Quezon City.
The incident was witnessed by Brillantes and members of a poll watchdog.
“We decided to use a back-up machine instead so as to avoid any more glitches. Initially, the first
machine did not accept the ballots, maybe because of the paper,”• said James Jimenez, Comelec
spokesman.
Although the replacement machine rejected the first three ballots, it accepted the subsequent ones.
There were also reports of errors in PCOS transmission during the dry run in Misamis Occidental,
Misamis Oriental, and Cagayan de Oro.
Comelec officials said they will correct all the PCOS glitches in time for the May elections.
They believed that the Precinct Count Optical Scan machine failed to accept the ballot because it
needed to be warmed up after long periods of rest.
Brillantes said the result of the mock elections will expose all potential problems so that the
Comelec can solve these woes in time.
He added that another mock election may be conducted depending on the results of dry run.
Mock elections will also test the new streamlined voting procedure that we will be implementing
this May elections, he said.
The mock election was also witnessed by members of election watchdog Parish Pastoral Council for
Responsible Voting led by its chairperson Henrietta de Villa.
The PPCRV was recently accredited by the Comelec as its Citizensꞌ Arm for this yearꞌs national and
local elections.
De Villa said she was hoping that the glitches seen during mock polls would prompt the commission
to take emergency measures.
“While I was initially nervous, Iꞌm glad it happened because you saw thereꞌs a contingency plan in
place,” said De Villa.
Former Comelec commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal also expected this yearꞌs polls to be better than
in 2010 when the first automated elections were held.
He urged stakeholders to continue their vigilance to avoid lapses in procedure using the voting
machines, which the Comelec bought from its 2010 election partner Smartmatic International Corp.
Mock elections were also held at Epifanio delos Santos Elementary School and Herminigildo Atienza
Elementary School, both in Manila; Iriga City in Iriga Central School and Sta. Teresita Elementary
School, and the municipality of Bato at Bato North Elementary School and Atipolo Elementary
School, in Camarines Sur; Dumaguete City (City Central Elementary School and Camanjac
Elementary School) and the municipality of Sta. Catalina (Santa Catalina North Central School and
Kabulacan Elementary School), in Negros Oriental.
Cagayan de Oro City at City Central School and Balulang Elementary School and the municipality of
Initao (Initao Central School and Oguis Elementary School), in Misamis Oriental; and the
municipalities of Bongao (Lamion Walking Blackboard Elementary School and Simandagit
Elementary School) in Tawi-Tawi; and Buluan (Pilot Elementary School and Talitay Elementary
School) in Maguindanao.
In these places, 50 voters from each of the identified voting centers were tapped.
The ballots used in the mock polls had the names of Hollywood actors such as Tom Cruise and Tom
Hanks as well as singers Mariah Carey and Michael Jackson to avoid controversies if the names of
actual candidates were printed, a poll official said.
39
ANNEX C
COMELEC
URGED TO CONDUCT
MOCK ELECTIONS AGAIN
Wednesday 06 February 2013
Matikas Santos
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/353681/comelec-urged-to-conduct-mock-elections-again
MANILA, Philippines—The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has been urged to conduct
another mock automated election in order to rectify the reported glitches of the Precinct
Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines during the previous mock polls.
The Joint Congressional Oversight Committee (JCOC) on Automated Election System held
a hearing Wednesday to question Comelec officials about the said glitches such as
rejection of some ballots by PCOS machines during Saturday’s mock elections.
“The mock election was good because it exposed the weaknesses [of the automated
system],” Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, head of the Senate panel, told reporters after the
hearing.
“I told [Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. that] we have to have confidence building
measures, we cannot just stop after the mock elections and leave the perception of people
that the automated system is more disorderly and their votes might not be counted,”
Cayetano said in Filipino.
Comelec executive director Jose Tolentino Jr. explained during the hearing that some of
the reasons why a few ballots were not initially accepted by the PCOS machines was that
they had been folded or crumpled when voters “jammed” the ballot into the PCOS.
Such “ramming” of ballots caused tampering in some security features on the ballot that’s
why it would not be accepted by the PCOS, Brillantes said.
But when the ballots were carefully fed into the PCOS, it was accepted, Tolentino said. In
a few cases where the ballot was still not being accepted by the PCOS, it was tried in
another spare PCOS reserved for contingency measures and was immediately accepted,
he added.
Brillantes also explained that another possible reason why some of the ballots were not
immediately accepted was because of improper or inadequate shading of the ovals. He
said that the PCOS was configured to return the ballot in such cases so that the voter can
correct the shading.
Bayan Muna party-list Representative Neri Colmenares said they are proposing that
another mock elections be held as early as April 12.
“Our proposal here in the JCOC is to conduct another mock elections at most April 12, if
not earlier, so whatever glitches can be cured by the Comelec [before election time],”
Colmenares told reporters in a separate interview.
He also said that the final testing to be conducted by Comelec a week before the elections
was insufficient.
Cayetano also urged for another mock elections saying “it is important that the mock
elections be given a take two. It is important to show that this is 100 percent glitch-free.”
“What people expect is that, after waiting in line for a long period of time, their vote will
be counted,” Cayetano said.
40
ANNEX D
Comelec: No perfect mock election
Thursday 07 February 2013
Maricel V. Cruz
http://manilastandardtoday.com/2013/02/07/comelec-no-perfect-mock-election/
Commission on Elections Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. told lawmakers Wednesday that they would
do final testing on precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines seven days before the actual polls
open, but cautioned them not to expect a perfect mock election. Speaking at a hearing of the
congressional oversight committee on automated elections, Brillantes said the Comelec had yet to
determine if another mock election was needed, after glitches marred SaturdayꞋs exercise. He
assured the lawmakers that the Comelec was prepared for the May elections, despite the problems
that surfaced during the mock polls. Brillantes also played down the likelihood that the thickness of
the paper used might have caused the machines to reject some ballots. He said the National
Printing Office has printed 200,000 ballots and only a few were rejected by the PCOS machines.
In the same hearing, Comelec Executive Director Jose Tolentino criticized the media for
exaggerating the PCOS glitches. He pointed out that at the University of the Philippines Diliman
campus where one of the mock elections had been held, only one ballot was rejected by the optical
machine due to an ambiguous mark. Tolentino said the incorrect feeding of the ballots into the
machine might have caused problems.
Brillantes agreed, saying the improper insertion of the ballot could fold or crumple the ballot and
cause it to be rejected. Insufficient shading on the ballot could also cause rejection, he said, adding
that voters will have four tries to correct these defects.
The president of Smartmatic, Cesar Flores, said their machines would read any ballot as long as
the shading did not obscure the barcode or markings on the side of the ballot.
Opposition lawmakers, however, said the Election Modernization Law would have to be amended to
allow the Comelec to revert to a manual election system if problems with the PCOS machines
persist. Siquijor Rep. Orlando Fua said that Congress should be able to call a special session to
work on the amendments. “If the reported glitches that marred the operations of the machines
during a recent mock election will recur in the May elections, then we should revert to the manual
system. But Congress needs to conduct a special session to amend the automation law,”• Fua said.
House Minority Leader Danilo Suarez added that the glitches in SaturdayꞋs mock polls showed that
the Comelec and Smartmatic have not yet solved the technical difficulties experienced during the
2010 elections.
“Though Chairman (Sixto) Brilliantes was quick to downplay the implications of SaturdayꞋs
exercise, we beg to strongly differ from his opinion. Among the glitches observed were: 1) ballots
rejected despite not having any known defect, 2) PCOS transmission failures, 3) PCOS machines
with missing clips and rollers that did not work, 4) jamming of paper ballots, 5) difficulty in starting
them up and 6) problems keying in the pin code of the machine during the initialization process,”
Suarez told reporters at a weekly news conference.
Suarez also said there were also reports that some Comelec officers and board of election
inspectors inside the precinct at the UP Integrated School in Quezon City failed to observe the rules
of the actual conduct of the elections as they were seen “tinkering”• with the voting machine even
after the initialization report, an act prohibited in the Comelec General Instructions in the 2010
elections.
“The National Movement for Free Elections also observed that names on the voterꞋs list posted
outside the polling precincts were different from those on Board of Election Inspector list,” Suarez
said.
“Now these deficiencies and inconsistencies concerned only some 20 voting centers used during the
mock elections. Multiply that probability to the76,000 polling centers during the actual elections,
and we can already get a rough estimate of the magnitude of what could happen,”• Suarez said.
He also expressed concern over reports from the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines
that tech-savvy individuals were offering to manipulate the poll results for P20 million to P70
million.
41
ANNEX E
POLL BODY RULES OUT
ANOTHER MOCK ELECTION
Saturday 16 February 2013
HDT/Sunnex
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/breaking-news/2013/02/16/poll-body-rules-out-another-mock-election-268531
MANILA -- The Commission on Elections (Comelec) ruled out the possibility of
holding another mock election after its February 2 dry run received positive review
from the Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC).
"TEC already validates our mock elections," said Comelec Chairman Sixto
Brillantes Jr. in an interview. "(TEC) resolves, to certify, that the AES (automated
election system)... can operate properly, securely, and accurately be used by the
voters, boards of election inspectors, local and national boards of canvassers, and
Comelec in the May 13, 2013 national and local elections."
During the mock polls conducted at the University of the Philippines Integrated
School in Quezon City, the initialization of the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS)
machine encountered problems early on after the password keyed in by the
chairman of the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI) was not accepted until the unit
was restarted.
Later on, it became necessary to replace the PCOS unit after the first four voters
had their ballots rejected.
Comelec Spokesman James Jimenez has already expressed the commission's
determination to educate all 52 million voters on how to deal with the PCOS
machines come Election Day.
He said this does not necessarily mean that everyone would be aware of the "nuts
and bolts of how a PCOS machine works" but simply capable of knowing how they
will vote through it.
"No one needs to be a technical expert. And within those parameters, we will
continue with our education efforts and we will try to answer all of their concerns.
Just give us a chance," Jimenez said.
Jimenez said the Comelec's goal is to make the PCOS machine "a casual element
of elections" in the Philippines much like how a computer works in the daily lives of
Filipinos.
To note, the Comelec has been engaged in the conduct of PCOS demonstrations in
various parts of the country, wherein voters are given the chance to experience
voting and get information on basic troubleshooting.
42
ANNEX F
COMELEC:
NO MORE MOCK ELECTIONS
Sunday 17 February 2013
Sheila Crisostomo with Paolo Romeroa
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2013/02/17/909767/comelec-no-more-mock-elections
MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will no longer conduct
another mock election despite the glitches observed during the Feb. 2 mock polls.
Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes said the report of the Technical Evaluation Committee
(TEC) had already validated the mock polls conducted in 20 voting centers in 10 areas
across the country.
The glitches include the difficulties experienced by the Board of Election Inspectors (BOI)
in keying in their pin codes in the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines, rejection
of some ballots by the machines and delay in the transmission of election results from the
polling precincts to the canvassing centers.
This resulted in calls to go back to the manual system of elections in May.
The Comelec, however, argued that this would require the amendment of Republic Act
9369, which mandates the automation of the country’s elections.
With the TEC report, the Comelec has ruled out any chance that the May 13 polls will be
done manually despite the absence of a certified source code — a human-readable
instruction on how the PCOS machine should function.
Brillantes said the poll body could use the TEC report as a “justification” that the
automation of the elections could push through, using the source code certified by
Colorado-based independent firm SLI Global Solutions in 2011.
“One argument is that in 2010, we had an election although no one actually saw the
source code. Nobody even knew what was inside the Central Bank (where the source code
was supposedly kept),” he said.
Brillantes said what is important are the “binaries,” the machine-readable instruction in
the PCOS machines.
“Manual is already impossible with the certification issued by TEC. We are going to
proceed automated no matter what happens. (Whether) source code is there or not, (it is)
not necessary (anymore),” he added.
The TEC, composed of the Comelec, Department of Science and Technology and
Commission on Information and Communications Technology, was tasked by Republic Act
9369 to review and certify if the automated election system (AES), including its hardware
and software components, is “operating properly, securely, and accurately” in accordance
with the provisions of the law.
The assessment shall be based on the successful conduct of a field testing process,
followed by a mock election; successful completion of audit on accuracy, functionality and
security controls of the AES software and the development, provisioning and operationalization of a continuity plan to cover risks to the AES at all points in the process so
that failure of elections — whether at voting, counting or consolidation — may be avoided,
among others.
The TEC, in a resolution, noticed the lack of certified source code but ruled that the AES
complied with the law in general.
House opposition wary of poll chief
Meanwhile, House Minority Leader and Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez hit Brillantes for his
continued cavalier attitude on the international dispute between Smartmatic, which was
contracted by the Comelec to supply the PCOS machines, and Dominion Voting Systems
that owns the software to run the equipment.
Suarez said Brillantes has been making useless retorts to the public whenever asked
about how he is resolving the quarrel of the two foreign companies.
He said the poll chief threatened at one point to go manual in the counting of votes and
did not the face the issue.
Suarez warned Brillantes not to take the issue and the reported glitches lightly.
43
ANNEX G
SMILEY ON BALLOTS FOR MOCK POLLS
FAILS TO MAKE COMELEC SMILE
Thursday 28 February 2013
Maila Ager
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/366505/smiley-on-ballots-in-mock-polls-fails-to-make-comelec-smile
MANILA, Philippine — Putting a “smiley” in the ballots during mock elections is definitely
not making the Commission on Elections (Comelec) happy.
This is the reason why the Comelec is reluctant to hold another mock automated election
despite the reported glitches of the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines during
the previous mock polls, its executive director, Attorney Jose Tolentino Jr., told an
oversight committee hearing on automated election system on Thursday.
“Noong nag conduct kami ng simulation sa Comelec, yung mga participants really wanted
to find out what will happen if they place a dot on the oval,” Tolentino said.
“Ang discussion is, why should we conduct another simulation when the participants will
only make a mockery out of it like putting a smiley, putting a big line on all the ovals just
to find out what will happen…”
“Actually, never kaming nagkaroon ng instance na kapag nag simulate kami, tama ang
pagka-shade. Talagang sinasadya nila just to find out how the PCOS will read …” he
pointed out.
So when Dasmarinas Representative Elpidio Barzaga Jr, co-chairman of the committee,
asked if the poll body would still hold another mock election before the May 2013
elections, Tolentino said: “The matter is still being discussed with the commissioners. We
are divided.”
Bayan Muna Representative Neri Colmenares, who attended the meeting, expressed
surprise that the poll body has yet to debate whether or not to conduct a mock election.
“What’s the debate about? Anong issue ag pinagdedebatehan?” Colmenares asked.
And when Tolentino explained how the participants made a “mockery” of their last mock
polls, Colmenares said, “But I think the reason you’re conducting this simulated elections
is to test its actual condition…”
“But you see, the credibility of the mock election is under question tapos yun lang naman
ang dahilan baka maglagay na naman ng smiley, napakababaw na dahilan para hindi iconduct…E di sabihin ninyo lahat na nandun na seryosohin nyo. It’s not a big deal…”
“Nagulat ako…akala ko you’re talking of budget, pera,” Colmenares added.
44
ANNEX H
COMELEC:
DONꞋT MAKE A MOCKERY
OUT OF MOCK POLLS
Friday 1 March 2013
Christina Mendez
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2013/02/28/914251/comelec-dont-make-mockery-out-mock-polls
MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is reluctant to hold another
mock elections to test the integrity of the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines
because participants are not taking the initiative seriously, an official told the joint
congressional oversight committee on automated elections on Thursday.
Responding to a query posed by Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares whether the agency
will have another mock elections, Comelec executive director Jose Tolentino Jr. explained
that the agency has not made a decision because participants “make a mockery” out of
the mock elections.
“The discussion is, why should we conduct another simulation when the participants only
make a mockery out of it? Like putting a smiley, putting one big line out of the ovals just
to find out if the machine will read it,” Tolentino said.
“We never had an instance where the shading is proper…just to find out how the PCOS will
read that particular mark,” Tolentino lamented.
Tolentino also added that the commissioners are still divided whether the poll body should
have another mock polls before the May elections.
“The matter is still being discussed with the commissioners. We are divided,” he told
committee co-chairman Dasmarinas Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr.
Tolentino noted that even when the Comelec conducted simulation exercises in the House
of Representatives, the participants tested how the PCOS machines would determine ovals
which are not fully shaded.
“When we conducted the simulation in Congress, the participants really wanted to find out
what will happen if they place a dot on the oval… others placed “X”, we have to darken
the oval fully,” he recalled.
During the hearing, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano reiterated his call to the the Comelec to
ensure the integrity of the counting and canvassing of votes following reports of errors
during the mock elections last month.
“You do not have to convince us. We have to convince the public…. Right now, you can
understand that there is a gap in the communication,” Cayetano said, noting that while
the Comelec vows that it is all-systems go for the May midterm polls, some groups are
still not convinced that there will be no glitches on the automated polls.
Tolentino revealed that the Comelec will still test the integrity of the PCOS machines “not
earlier seven days before elections, and not later than three years before (the polls).
He said that the test will be held in selected classrooms that will be used as poll precincts.
The Comelec will use 10 ballots that contain the names of the candidates.
“Except that there will be a mark that it is a final testing and sealing ballot,” Tolentino
said.
Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. lamented that the Comelec has not cleared the issues raised on
the lack of source code for the PCOS machines. He said it was wrong for the Comelec to
rely only on binary codes since the source codes are needed to verify entries in the
machines.
Cesar Flores, president of the Smartmatic Asia-Pacific that supplied the PCOS machines,
assured the integrity of the automated polls come May.
“(The) 2010 elections were accurate and secure, [the automated elections] will continue
to be,” he told reporters after the hearing.
45
ANNEX I
VIEW FROM MALCOLM
The case of Smartmatic versus Dominion
21 March 2013
Harry Roque
http://manilastandardtoday.com/2013/03/21/the-case-of-smartmatic-versus-dominion/
AES Watch, the genuine election watchdog, recently commissioned me to write a case note on the
recent litigation between Smartmatic and Dominion in the Chancery Court of Delaware, USA. The
case is for a declaration that Dominion could not terminate its Precinct Count Optical Scan License
Agreement and/or that Dominion should be compelled to comply with its contractual obligations.
Reading the complaint, I was shocked at the level of misrepresentations that both Smartmatic and
the Commission on Elections made before the Supreme Court, no less, when we questioned the
constitutionality of the PCOS automation contract in 2009. This cost taxpayers no less than P13
billion. To begin with, I was shocked to find that in Smartmatic’s complaint against Dominion, it
admitted that it was a mere middleman when it bid and was awarded the contract to supply an
Automated Election System in 2009. In its complaint, it alleged: “In 2009, Smartmatic sought to
contract with the Republic of the Philippines (“Philippines”) Commission on Elections (“COMELEC”)
to provide certain technology and services to modernize and automate the Philippines’ National
Elections (“Philippines Election Modernization Project” or “Project”). One of COMELEC’s
requirements for the Project was an election solution that had the ability to read and interpret data
from paper ballots, and Smartmatic determined that certain PCOS technology marketed by
Dominion would likely satisfy this requirement and be compatible with Smartmatic’s election
products.” While Smartmatic alleges that it is in the business of supplying automated election
system, the reality was when it bid for the PCOS system, it relied on a product—consisting of both
hardware and software—which belonged to a competing entity, Dominion. Why this was allowed by
the Comelec is literally the P13-billion question. Worse, Smartmatic, as a mere middleman of the
PCOS system, complained that Dominion failed to deliver a working system to the Philippines:
“During a test of the automated voting system conducted shortly before the Election, COMELEC and
Smartmatic discovered a defect in the Licensed Technology—Dominion International’s software
failed to correctly read and record the paper ballot”. Dominion for its part, countered by stating
exactly our first line of attack against the PCOS: that it failed to comply with the legal requirement
that the system must be pilot-tested in at least two highly urbanized cities and provinces in Luzon,
Visayas and Mindanao. This was Dominion’s answer: “Smartmatic failed to control processing and
delivery timelines and as a consequence failed to conduct standard and routine industry-wide
testing of the voting system prior to deployment despite the fact that Dominion International had
told Smartmatic that it was standard and routine in the industry and needed to be done and
despite the fact that Smartmatic had known the necessity of such testing and conducted such
testing in prior elections in other countries.” The Complaint also had to be filed by Smartmatic
because apparently, Dominion had already terminated its license agreement with Smartmatic.
Among other reasons, Smartmatic had to be cajoled into paying the agreed license fees, which per
contract, were supposed to be paid within five days from receipt of payments from the COMELEC.
According to Dominion, Smartmatic did not even divulge the fact that it has already been paid for
the lease of 79,000 PCOS machines used for the 2010 elections. But the crux of the complaint was
Smartmatic’s insistence that Dominion could not terminate the contract and must continue to allow
it to use its PCOS software since meanwhile, it had sold the machines to the COMELEC. According
to Dominion, it was no longer obligated to have its software available to Smartmatic because it had
terminated the contract. It also stated that the License agreement covered only the 2010 elections
and did not include subsequent elections. The ramifications of the case are dire. While we paid an
additional P4 billion pesos when we purchased the PCOS machines from Smartmatic, it turns out
that according to Dominion, Smartmatic had no authority to sell us the machines. It would appear
too that given Dominion’s position that it is not obligated to allow Smartmatic further use of its
software, our elections this year may have to rely on an Open System separate and distinct form
that owned by Dominion. But the height of injustice is that while the Supreme Court decision that
upheld the PCOS system in 2009 said that the guarantee against hacking that might compromise
the integrity of the automated election system was the fact that the source code will be made
available for examination of the parties and election watchdogs, the complaint makes it clear that
Smartmatic could not comply with this since its license from Dominion precluded this. We said this
in court but we were ignored. The case between Smartmatic and Dominion proves that while we
lost our case in the Supreme Court to declare PCOS as unconstitutional, history, and Smartmatic
itself, has nonetheless proven us right. I call this a victory, plain and simple.
46
ANNEX J
Catholic bishops split over PPCRV
BY ARIES RUFO
POSTED
2013/04/06/2:27 AM
UPDATED
2013/04/06/8:48 PM
http://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections-2013/25619-catholic-bishops-ppcrv-elections
MANILA, Philippines – The May 2013 elections is turning out to be a polarizing event for leaders of
the Catholic Church. Bishops are divided on whether to continue supporting the Church-based
Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) amid growing disenchantment with the
election watchdog. Doubts about Henrietta “Tita” de Villa, PPCRV chair, have lingered since 2010,
when she sat in the advisory council for country’s first nationwide automated polls. For partnering
with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and vote counting machines supplier Smartmatic, De
Villa, in the eyes of some prelates, was “co-opted” and has compromised PPRCV’s status as a
nonpartisan poll watchdog. It did not help that De Villa has been a vocal supporter of the
automated polls, despite concerns from some Church leaders that it is vulnerable to high-tech
forms of cheating. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of
the Philippines (CBCP), issued a statement stressing his full personal support for the beleaguered
poll watchdog. This did not prevent Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles from breaking ties with the
PPCRV. He raised questions about its credibility and integrity. Arguelles added that more bishops
are expected to follow suit, in a move that could further hurt PPRCV’s ground operations. De Villa,
in an interview with Comelec reporters on Friday, April 5, said she had explained PPCRV’s side to
the bishop. She can only respect the bishop’s decision to still withdraw its support, and she is
“leaving it all up to God.” In the same interview, during a visit to the Comelec warehouse in
Laguna, Comelec chair Sixto Brillantes Jr revealed that Arguelles wrote him, seeking a separate
accreditation for the Diocese of Lipa to be a citizen's arm. The prelate was told that the
accreditation period had ended and they can just partner with the two other approved groups,
Namfrel and One Vote.
Snubbed twice
The CBCP as a whole has been wary of the supposed lack of transparency in the automated
election. The collegial body reiterated this in its pastoral letter in January this year. The CBCP
warned that questions on the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines, “if not properly
addressed, the present automated election system can lead to wholesale cheating. The integrity of
a pillar of our democracy—the election—is at stake.” Amid the CBCP criticism, PPRCV has opted to
remain uncritical of the automated polls. Its “territorial war” with the National Citizens’ Movement
for Free Elections (Namfrel) over election duties also did not help PPRCV’s shaky position with some
of the bishops. A source from Namfrel said Manila bishop Broderick Pabillo had sought to broker
talks between Namfrel and PPCRV to delineate and clarify the two election watchdogs’ duties.
Twice, Pabillo invited Namfrel and PPRCV to a meeting; twice, De Villa did not attend and did not
give a reason.
The twin snub was enough for Pabillo to drop PPCRV.
On March 15, Pabillo said the National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice, and Peace (Nassa) is
severing its ties with PPRCV, and is shifting its support to Namfrel and Lente, also an election
watchdog. “We now declare our support to Namfrel and Lente as they generally respect and work
hard to establish coordination and good partnership with Nassa and social action network during
election,” said Pabillo, who chairs Nassa. The decision was backed by the executive committee.
Nassa is the social arm of the CBCP and has control of the social action centers in parishes, which
both PPCRV and Namfrel rely on for manpower during elections. Other prelates who are Nassa
officials are Archbishops Antonio Ledesma and John Du and Bishops Emmanuel Trance, Leopoldo
Tumulak, and Vicente Navarra. Still, recognizing the autonomous nature of the dioceses, Pabillo
said it is up to the individual bishops whether they would still support PPCRV since his position was
only recommendatory. It is also a double edged sword. Those bishops who are still willing to back
PPCRV can no longer expect financial support from Nassa for this year’s election operational
expenses . Nassa provides subsidies to the social action centers of the dioceses. De Villa, for her
part, said that as far as she knew, only Arguelles was withdrawing support from her organization.
It’s “business as usual for PPCRV,” since “none of the other dioceses have severed ties with us,”
she said in Filipino.
47
ANNEX J-1
Catholic bishops split over PPCRV
BY ARIES RUFO
POSTED
2013/04/06/2:27 AM
UPDATED
2013/04/06/8:48 PM
http://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections-2013/25619-catholic-bishops-ppcrv-elections
(continuation)
Sleeping with the enemy
But PPRCV’s woes do not end there. On March 26, an open letter issued by 16 civil society
organizations cited the PPRCV leadership’s “betrayal of public trust” and asked the Church to
disassociate itself from the poll watchdog. The group, which included Konsensyang Pilipino of
former Senate President Jovito Salonga and EarthSavers Movement of Cecille Guidote-Alvarez,
demanded that De Villa resign from PPCRV for compromising the reputation of the watchdog. The
group took De Villa to task for acting as lapdog, instead of a watchdog, of the Comelec and
Smartmatic during the conduct of the 2010 polls.
In particular, the group questioned De Villa’s supposed complicity with Comelec and Smartmatic in
denying access to the random manual audit for the 2010 polls which have never been made public.
They also raised questioned PPCRV for supporting Comelec’s purchase of the PCOS machines from
Smartmatic to be used for the 2013 polls. The move “was patently contrary to the position taken
by civil society and IT experts, particularly Archbishop Fernando Capalla and Pabillo,” both of whom
signed petitions against Comelec and Smartmatic.
What took the cake was De Villa’s move to tap former Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal
as PPCRV vice chairman for external affairs, the group said. As poll commissioner, Larrazabal was
on top of the automation project in 2010.
“The mandate to be the watchdog to ensure, clean, hones and accurate and meaningful election is
a moral mission. The transgression of the impartiality, non-bias and non-partisanship of that
mission invalidates the PPCRV raison d’être,” the group said.
Larrazabal recently resigned from PPCRV.
Palma to the rescue
The group urged Church officials “to apply pressure on PPCRV leadership. The top PPCRV leadership
must have the mantle of Cesar’s wife.”
Responding on the civil society’s open letter, Archbishop Palma said that despite his concerns on
the PCOS machines and the conduct of the 2013 elections, he still supports PPCRV as a citizen arm.
“I recognize in PPCRV leadership the same desire to be of service to our people by working for
clean, honest, accurate and meaningful elections,” Palma said.
He stressed, however, that he is only speaking only on his behalf as “unless we gather as a plenum
or as members of the permanent council or as regional representatives, I could not speak on behalf
o the body.”
Palma’s pre-emptive move failed to impress Arguelles.
This week, Arguelles announced that the Lipa archdiocese is cutting its ties with PPCRV due to
nagging questions on its credibility. “We cannot rely anymore on the present PPCRV since some of
their leaders used to be Comelec people with a reputation that is questionable. There seem to be
personal interest in the leadership,” apparently referring to Larrazabal.
As for De Villa, Arguelles said, “for some reason, we are no longer sure if she is objective.”
Malolos Bishop Jose Oliveros, in a separate interview, said some bishops have issues about the
automated elections that PPCRV and Comelec have failed to address. These include transparency in
the results, as well as flaws and defects in the PCOS machines, which can taint the outcome of
elections.
For instance, he said, Comelec has not been able to explain why Bulacan province had the most
number of reports about defective PCOS machines during the 2010 polls.
Still, Oliveros said he will continue to support PPRCV while respecting Arguelles decision to sever
ties with the poll watchdog. “That was his assessment and I respect that.”
Rappler.com
48
ANNEX K
The Ghost in the (PCOS) Machine:
Is there a better alternative?
BY TJ Dimacali
POSTED 2013/05/14/5:36 PM
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/308351/scitech/technology/the-ghost-in-the-pcos-machine-is-there-a-better-alternative
The government and the general public have all but declared the May 13 Philippine
general elections an overall success, and it's now just a matter of time before all
the mostly machine-tallied votes are in. But the lingering question remains:
Can the machines be trusted? And is there a better alternative?
Underscored confidence
Certainly, both the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and its Precinct Count
Optical Scan (PCOS) machine supplier, Smartmatic Asia, have constantly
underscored the reliability of the automated elections. The poll agency earlier
expressed confidence that it would see a two-percent failure rate at most —
equivalent to 1,560 out of 78,000 machines. Smartmatic was even more
optimistic, expecting defective machines to "reach (just) 200 or 300." And
although the Comelec has yet to issue official figures on the performance of its
machines at the polls as of May 14, anecdotal evidence seems to back their claim:
the Eleksyon 2013 Incident Tracker, a joint effort between GMA News and the AMA
Education System, posted just 1,063 reports of "PCOS machine problems" as of
late afternoon on election day.
Even one of the automated election's staunchest critics, former Comelec
commissioner Augusto "Gus" Lagman, agrees that technical problems should be
the least of anyone's concerns. "If a machine breaks down, it's easy enough to get
a technician to repair or replace it," Lagman told GMA News in a phone interview.
Who watches the machines?
Yet despite the apparent success of the May 13 polls, Lagman is uneasy about how
everyone seems to accept the results from the automated voting machinery so
easily. He believes that the public should be more worried about how the machines
work, rather than if they work in the first place. "Hardware glitches are easy to
solve and fix, but the (issue of) non-transparency wasn't fixed. It's not
transparent, we still don't know (if there are unseen problems in the machines),"
he said.
Lagman is concerned that the Philippine public has basically entrusted the entire
elections to Comelec and Smartmatic: between them, the two agencies hold all the
cards insofar as monitoring the reliability of the voting machines is concerned.
"What worries me more is that the results are published, people accept them —but
are they accurate? What about possible errors in the source code? The CF cards?
People don't see these. There is no transparency at all," he said.
49
ANNEX K-1
The Ghost in the (PCOS) Machine:
Is there a better alternative?
BY TJ Dimacali
POSTED 2013/05/14/5:36 PM
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/308351/scitech/technology/the-ghost-in-the-pcos-machine-is-there-a-better-alternative
(continuation)
Getting to the source
The much-publicized source code —the computer instructions that tell each PCOS machine
how to count votes— has been a particular sticking point in Lagman's criticism of the
entire automated process. Since the source code is used to program all the PCOS
machines even before they are shipped out across the country, it is a potential point of
weakness if not properly calibrated or, worse, if it contains instructions that allow hackers
to take control behind the scenes —a "backdoor," as it's called in computer programming
parlance. But whether from hackers or from simple human error, any programming
problems remain unknown —especially since the source code was released to the public
just days before the elections, leaving no time for local experts to analyze the thousands
of lines of code contained therein.
Grounds for annulment
For his part, Comelec commissioner Sixto Brillantes Jr. assured the public that the source
code had been independently reviewed and certified by an internationally accredited
testing company. He was so confident with the integrity of the source code that he told
local reporters that, should any anomalies be found, the Comelec is ready to "annul the
elections." But Lagman said that a proper review of the code would take months, by which
time the elections will have been long over and done with —and the declared winners
firmly in office. "Medyo natatakot ako," Lagman told GMA News in a separate interview.
"Halimbawa may nakitang diperensya sa source code, meron nang nanalo, madami
natalo. 'Pag nagkaproblema na lumabas, sasabihin ng natalo invalid. Wala akong solusyon
doon. Masyadong nakatatakot."
Off-the-shelf alternatives
Even though the elections seem to have concluded on a satisfying note —at least until the
source code has been properly reviewed— Lagman believes that the Comelec should
seriously reassess its automated election strategy. "Comelec should look at other systems
and check the cost-benefit of each," he said. He argues that precinct counting can be kept
manual while the canvassing and transmission of election returns should be done
electronically, since the latter involves a longer duration and is most susceptible to
manipulation. According to Lagman, the development of an automated consolidation and
canvassing system (CCS) is the more cost-effective option because the government could
use just off-the-shelf laptops instead of the purpose-built —and therefore much more
expensive — PCOS machines. The CCS would also have the benefit of transparency, since
almost anyone would be able to see and tally the votes for themselves. "I've always
believed in 'secret voting, public counting'," Lagman concluded.
YA, GMA News
50
ANNEX L
AES WATCH:
FROM BAD TO WORSE:
COMELEC IS NOW ANOINTER OF PRESUMED
BUT NOT VERIFIED WINNERS
19 May 2013
http://manilatimes.net/index/index.php/news/headlines-mt/47832-aes-watch-from-bad-to-worse-comelec-is-now-anointer-of-presumed-but-not-verified-winners
AES WATCH
AUTOMATED ELECTION SYSTEM WATCH
Press Statement
Saturday 18 May 2013
Ang Bahay ng Alumni
University of the Philippines
By committing more errors than those recorded in 2010, by making arbitrary and highlyirregular decisions during canvassing, and proclaiming presumed winning candidates
prematurely, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has turned the second automated
elections from bad to worse — a technology and political disaster. Aside from Comelec’s
non-compliance — yet again — of the election law and the technical glitches, there was an
unprecedented large-scale vote buying.
Political clans are now even more entrenched with a bigger number of their members
being fielded in extensive areas and perpetuating themselves in power thereafter.
In 2010, a significant number of clustered precincts in both provinces and cities had
delayed transmissions of up to two days; as of May 17 2013 or four days after this year’s
election, 18,187 clustered precincts or 23 percent of the total number failed to transmit
election returns affecting if not potentially disenfranchising 8.6M voters.
Aside from demolishing the much-hyped “speed” of automation, the transmission delays
opened the whole system to data manipulation and election rigging. More than 50 percent
of 1,173 incidents based on verified PARTIAL monitoring results of AES Watch were PCOSrelated (911 clustered precincts)—from initialization errors, machine breakdown to
hardware problems and ballot rejection.
A total of 1,432 monitored clustered precincts (1.84 percent of total CPs) from all over the
country had either PCOS or transmission problems. This is equivalent to 1.432M
compromised votes.
Compared to 2010, there are more data discrepancies as well as open and brazen possible
manipulation of election data at the stage of canvassing and consolidation.
For example: the ultra-fast and inflated PPCRV count caused by program error, the highlysuspicious intervention of Smartmatic technicians in fixing the program and deletion of an
ER file, the 44-hour lull at 69 percent of ERs, and the absence of random manual audit
results five days after election.
While in 2010 Comelec’s non-compliance of major election law provisions and ToR
happened largely before the polls, today not only were these violations (e.g., absence of
independent source code review) repeated but we are witness as well to arbitrary and
highly-questionable post-election decisions such as proclaiming “winning” senatorial
candidates based only on 20 percent of canvassed election results. This is compounded by
the latest decision to transport un-transmitted CF cards direct to the NBOC thus bypassing
the legal ladderized canvassing—a procedure that is also prone to human tampering.
51
ANNEX L-1
AES WATCH:
FROM BAD TO WORSE:
COMELEC IS NOW ANOINTER OF PRESUMED
BUT NOT VERIFIED WINNERS
19 May 2013
http://manilatimes.net/index/index.php/news/headlines-mt/47832-aes-watch-from-bad-to-worse-comelec-is-now-anointer-of-presumed-but-not-verified-winners
(continuation)
All these raise the issue whether Comelec is not only short-cutting the process but is also
dictating the results of the election in violation of the people’s right of suffrage. Comelec
has leaped beyond what it is supposed to do— to administer the elections and protect the
people’s sovereign voice; now it has become the anointer for who deserves to win. These
problems became manifest in the mid-term elections especially because of Comelec’s
repeated non-compliance to what the law requires and its disabling of all major security
and integrity features as well as safeguards: a valid license to operate a foreign-provided
software; a source code and its independent review by the people through political parties
and NGOs 6 months to 1 year before election; voter-friendly, transparency and
verifiability feature; a valid digital signature; non-WORM (write once, read many) CF
memory devices, independent testing of PCOS machines for trustworthiness and accuracy,
reliable mock elections and FTS, and effective random manual audit.
Given these deficiencies, AES Watch had weeks before election called for a full, 100
percent parallel manual counting of votes cast as the remaining compensating mechanism
for establishing the accuracy and credibility of the elections. Like all other proposals by
the CAC and other election stakeholders, this one was also completely ignored by the
Comelec. It is for these reasons that we also declared that Comelec is the one creating
the conditions toward casting doubts on the legitimacy of the elections and triggering a
public clamor to demand a failure of election.
The May 2013 elections was a mockery of the poll automation law, a serious technological
and political disaster, a grave violation of voters’ rights to have their votes counted
according to law and with accuracy. Just like in 2010, the implementation of the second
automated election cannot pass the standards of the IT industry. How can the elections be
credible when it is conducted by a most un-transparent Comelec led by an incredibly
insensitive chairman who is prone to arbitrary decisions and abuse of authority? A
defenseless electorate has been subjected to the whims and caprices of a powerful
triumvirate of the Comelec-Smartmatic-PPCRV leadership which tries time and again to
cover up and justify for the serious glitches and non-compliance of basic and major
security requirements to make poll automation work well for the people and the integrity
of the election process. What happened in 2013 polls poses a serious breach of security,
transparency and integrity.
Modern technology has been enacted as the instrument for exercising the people’s right to
vote, of deciding who are the winners upon whom the authority to govern is vested. Let
us remember that the modern election system has been a 20 plus-year project replete
with legal, political, and financial controversies. At the rate Comelec is implementing it
reveals that automated polls are a far cry from what was envisioned by its authors—that it
would modernize the election process.
AES Watch is a broad citizens’ election watchdog comprising of 40 organizations,
institutions, NGOs, IT professionals, researchers, and academics. Launched in January
2010, it monitored and documented the 2010 and 2013 automated elections.
52
ANNEX M
GOTCHA:
8-M VOTES STILL UNCOUNTED
NEW CHEATING MODUS SEEN
2013-05-22
By Jarius Bondoc
http://www.philstar.com/opinion/2013/05/22/944912/8-m-votes-still-uncounted-new-cheating-modus-seen
More than eight million votes remain untallied by the Comelec central server till noon
yesterday, eight long days after Election Day.
The eight million unaccounted votes comprise 23.7 percent, nearly one-fourth of the total
votes cast. (Of roughly 52 million voters, Comelec says, about 36.4 million or 70 percent
actually voted).
The eight million are missing because un-transmitted by precinct count optical scan
(PCOS) voting machines assigned to clusters.
Why they stay un-transmitted by the supposedly superfast PCOS, the Comelec won’t say,
apart from blaming unspecified “local fights.”
As of 11:01 a.m. yesterday, only 59,667 of 78,166 precinct clusters had been accounted
for. (Check out the website ppcrv.org; the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting
is monitoring the Comelec’s so-called “transparency server”.)
It has been stuck there since Monday, May 20, in fact.
Meaning, 18,499 clusters -- with over eight million votes -- have not transmitted tallies for
one reason or another since last week, May 13.
That 18,499 clusters have not transmitted could be due to PCOS hard and/or software
breakdowns.
If not, it could be due to defective compact-flash (CF) cards inserted in the PCOS to
transmit.
But the Comelec and its PCOS supplier Smartmatic insist that only 156 PCOS units bogged
down on Election Day. Too, that the CF cards that Smartmatic supplied (at overprice)
worked fine.
It can’t be the fault of telcos PLDT, Smart, Sun, and Globe either; their signals were okay
on and after Election Day. Even if telco signals jammed, the CF cards could have been
brought by land, sea, or air to the Comelec central office by now, one week later — but
weren’t.
If so, then the only reason left for 18,499 clusters to delay reporting eight million votes is
to give way to manipulation of results.
The manipulation could be for local contests: provincial, city, municipal, congressional. Or,
for national: senatorial, party-list.
Whatever, the CF card — the virtual ballot box — is now the center of renewed dagdagbawas (vote padding-shaving) under the new automated election system.
The Comelec should look into this, knowing that cheats will stop at nothing, under manual
or automated counting, to steal the vote.
Sadly, though, the poll body could have purposely or unwittingly covered up the cheating
with its wrongful premature proclamation of senatorial winners last week.
Whichever, the Comelec itself must be investigated for the non-transmission scam, and
the ensuing cover-up.
Poll watchdog PPCRV saw the transmission failures from the start. These came after an
initial spurt of 12 million votes tallied by the Comelec transparency server within the first
hour of counting on the night of May 13. “A physical impossibility,” other watchdogs
Namfrel, Kontra Daya, and AES-Watch said.
A Smartmatic exec and a tech came to fix a “computer programming error,” after which
the counting resumed. The PPCRV asked Comelec for the visitor logbook to identify them.
Chairman Sixto Brillantes declined, a PPCRV official told The STAR.
For the next two-and-a-half days the tallies came in trickles. On Thursday, May 16, the
server finally notched 69 percent, crawling still at snail’s pace to 76.3 percent by Monday
the 20th.
53
ANNEX M-1
GOTCHA:
8-M VOTES STILL UNCOUNTED
NEW CHEATING MODUS SEEN
2013-05-22
By Jarius Bondoc
http://www.philstar.com/opinion/2013/05/22/944912/8-m-votes-still-uncounted-new-cheating-modus-seen
(CONTINUATION)
Brillantes too noticed the super-slow PCOS. Instead of admitting, he covered it up by
proclaiming last Thursday the six top senatorial vote getters. At the time he had recorded
only 72 of 304 certificates of canvass, or 23.6 percent of the votes. Legal luminaries
decried his act as illegal.
Brillantes went on to proclaim three more senators on Friday, and the last three on
Sunday. “As if he was under pressure or accommodating somebody,” said the PPCRV
official. “At any rate, he distracted the people from the scam with CF cards in the field.”
With eight million votes yet to come, the last four senatorial slots are still contestable,
since vote variances between them are fractions of a million.
Brillantes based his early proclamations on “group canvasses,” that is, projected and not
actual numbers of votes cast. In short, guesswork.
Only now have poll cheats learned to manipulate the CF cards, ex-Comelec commissioner
Gus Lagman told The STAR. Very few knew how in 2010, the first usage of the vulnerable
PCOS system.
Lagman recalled the snafu with the CF cards that year, when Smartmatic had to replace
and reprogram 76,000 pieces. The originals had bogged down or transmitted false tallies
during the Final Testing and Sealing (FTS) of PCOS machines at the precinct-level.
It was only a week before election. Rushing the job, Smartmatic fielded thousands of
techs. Any one of them, with a devious mind, can now sell his vile service to manipulate
the CF card of the PCOS at the precinct, Lagman said. That cheat could do it for the
highest bidding local candidate, or a senatorial tail-ender, or a losing party list.
It would be easy. Smartmatic had supplied ordinary rewritable CF cards, instead of the
WORM-type (write once-read many).
Besides, the backup CF card in each PCOS was also not subjected to FTS before this
Election Day, Lagman said. The cards could have been corrupted from the start.
Last Monday the PPCRV redeployed field volunteers to find out why the 18,499 precinct
clusters had not yet transmitted tallies. Catholic bishops and Muslim imams reportedly
have joined in.
PPCRV spokeswoman Ana de Villa-Singson said they know exactly which precincts in what
municipalities have not transmitted, since the server shows them.
Lanao del Sur, a traditional dagdag-bawas province, has the lowest transmission rate of
16 percent, or only 182 of 1,146 precincts. Brillantes brags that under his watch, Lanao
for the first time did not suffer failure of election — forgetting that non-reporting of votes
is like no voting at all.
Ifugao, also notorious, follows with 26 percent, or only 60 of 232 precincts.
Other provinces with less than half of precincts reported are Sultan Kudarat (40 percent),
Basilan, (42), Maguindanao (42), and Zamboanga del Norte (43). (Click on the map in
ppcrv.org for province-specific info.)
Provinces with large voting populations contributed to the mess. Like, Pangasinan with 1.8
million voters has transmitted only 70 percent, or 1,648 of 2,364 precincts — with
540,000 missing. And yet, local reports already state the incumbent governor winning by
a landslide.
Meanwhile, Brillantes says he needs ten long days more, starting Monday, to canvass the
votes for 58 party list winners. Odd, given that only half of voters picked any party. Is
that the grace period for losing parties to pay up the winning ante?
54
ANNEX N
2013 / 05 /22 / 2:17 PM
WHY HAVE ALL DIGITAL SIGNATURES
FROM THE ELECTION RETURNS
BEEN STRIPPED?
By Joel Disini
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/309533/opinion/why-have-all-the-digital-signatures-from-the-election-returns-been-stripped
Something is not right with the way the Comelec is conducting the elections. If you go
over to http://2013electionresults.comelec.gov.ph and check the ERs (Election Returns)
from each precinct, you will find that the digital signatures on each ER have been
stripped. But digital signatures are absolutely necessary to ensure that the ERs are
authentic and have not been tampered with. Each PCOS machine (Precinct Count Optical
Scan—which is the device used to scan the ballots, tabulate them, and transmit the
results via GSM modem and/or onto a CF card) is supposed to be equipped with a private
key and a public key. The private key is embedded within the PCOS and is used to sign
(and optionally encrypt) the election results generated by the PCOS. The public key should
be published (preferably on a publicly accessible website, such as comelec.gov.ph), so
that the public can verify the authenticity of any ERs generated by the PCOS machines.
(Otherwise, how will Comelec know if the ERs they receive from the precincts have not
been sent by a rogue PCOS? How else will the Municipal Centers who receive the CF cards
containing ERs then determine that said ERs are authentic and that the CF cards have not
been switched?) For as long as the private key(s) are stored securely inside the PCOS and
assuming (1) there is no way to hack into the PCOS to reveal the private key, and
assuming that (2) no copies of the private keys have been kept by Comelec or Smartmatic
or some other party, then it will be practically impossible for anyone to fabricate fake ERs
and thus steal the election. Let me repeat that, as it bears repeating. For as long as the
PCOS machines have been programmed properly and for as long as proper security
measures were taken during the key generation/registration/embedding/signing process,
then it will be impossible for anyone to steal the election. Allow me to explain. A 2048-bit
key is mind-numbingly difficult to crack. It is estimated that a desktop computer will take
6400 trillion years to figure out the private key of a given public key. You can check out
the math here http://www.digicert.com/TimeTravel/math.htm. Private and Public keys,
on the other hand, while impossible to crack, can be generated quite easily by a desktop
computer using free open-source software, such as OpenSSL. The process of generating
the keys and storing the private keys in the PCOS machines should be witnessed not just
by Smartmatic and Comelec, but interested third parties such as the BEI (Board of
Election Inspectors) and representatives of each political party. The people witnessing the
process should ensure that all traces of the private key, once embedded in the PCOS, is
erased. If a USB drive was used to copy the private key into the PCOS, then that too must
be wiped clean. Ideally, some testing of the PCOS is done (by a qualified third party) to
ensure that the PCOS is secure and cannot be tampered with. To be safe, the source code
should also be reviewed, to make sure there is no back door inside that allows an insider
to enter a predefined set of keystrokes (or scan a predefined document) that will trigger
the back door (where the private key can be divulged, replaced, or the election results
themselves can be edited). Once the voting is over, the PCOS machines should generate
the ERs, sign them (using their unique private keys), and then transmit them to the
Comelec server, to the Transparency Server (monitored by the PPCRV, Rappler, etc), and
to the Municipal Centers. When the servers receive the ERs from a PCOS, they should
check their authenticity (by looking up the corresponding PCOS public keys and verifying
that they match the digital signatures). If everything checks out, the comelec server
should then publish the digitally signed election results on the comelec website. In this
manner, even if there are transmission delays, and horse-trading over the election
results, it will not be possible to tamper with the results.
55
ANNEX N-1
2013 / 05 /22 / 2:17 PM
WHY HAVE ALL DIGITAL SIGNATURES
FROM THE ELECTION RETURNS
BEEN STRIPPED?
By Joel Disini
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/309533/opinion/why-have-all-the-digital-signatures-from-the-election-returns-been-stripped
(CONTINUATION)
Someone can of course generate new public key & private key pairs, and then generate
fake ERs using the fake private keys. They would have to somehow tamper with the
database of public keys used by the Comelec server, as well as the Database used by
Transparency Server to pull off this stunt. Lastly, they would have to hack into the
comelec website and replace the list of public keys with their own set of fake public keys.
One way to avoid this (other than relying on the public to spot the hacker's attempts) is to
have the BEI and all the Political Parties sign the list of public keys. This way, it would be
impossible for the list of public keys to be replaced without being detected. The only way
to "beat" the system would then be to physically destroy the PCOS machines, or the
comelec & Transparency Server. So what can be done to prevent cheating in this current
election?
1) Comelec must IMMEDIATELY publish the list of precincts and their corresponding PCOS
public keys. There is no reason for the Comelec not to do this, other than to buy time to
generate new public key/private key pairs for precincts that have yet to report their
results.
2) They must publish the digital signatures that come with each ER. Again, there is no
reason for the Comelec not to do this, unless some of the published ERs have already
been tampered with.
3) The PCOS machines and their CF cards must be secured. If someone has already
generated a new set of private keys, then we can detect the fraud by reviewing the source
code for the PCOS machines, especially the part where the PCOS writes to the CF card &
signs the results, determine where the private Key is stored within the PCOS, then write
new code to access this location. Doing this will not be trivial, and it may take a lot of trial
and error, but there are 78T PCOS machines, so we have enough machines to experiment
on. The embedded private key can now be compared with the published public key and
see if they match. If they do not match, then there is cause to believe that some fraud
has taken place. Any attempts to reset the PCOS machines and erase their CF cards
should be deemed highly questionable.
4) Of course if unique private keys were never embedded into the PCOS machines, then
Smartmatic needs to be hauled into court, as there is absolutely no reason why they
should stick us with machines using ancient technology. Their existing SAES voting
machines already use 2048 public keys. And the cost to implement PKI (public key
infrastructure) is minimal - as there is a lot of open source code available to generate
keys, sign and encrypt documents, etc.
In fact, if Comelec deliberately asked Smartmatic to deliver PCOS machines without any
PKI, Smartmatic should have immediately known that something foul was afoot. This
would be the equivalent of asking a Private Security company to watch over a bank, and
requiring them to use mobile Phones and walkie-talkies with known transmission
problems, or to use CCTV cameras that fail to record, or to use bows and arrows instead
of guns! We shouldn't wait any longer for someone to file an electoral complaint, or for
someone to gather evidence of cheating before springing into action. We already have all
the evidence we need —as all the digital security measures to prevent cheating have been
turned off!— TJD, GMA News