THE Commission on Elections on Wednesday said it will re-bid
one of the two-part poll automation technology that will be used in the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao elections on Aug. 11 while evaluating a
qualified bid for the other half.
Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said they will begin
closely scrutinizing the offer of the South American firm Smartmatic, in a joint
venture with locally-based Sahi, for the Direct Recording Electronic (DRE)
technology to ensure it meets all specifications.
Jimenez made the announcement after initially saying that the
bidder for the Optical Mark Reader (OMR) had been disqualified and only the
elections in Maguindanao might be automated. Later in the day, he said the poll
body en banc approved the re-bidding for the OMR.
Jimenez said Smartmatic Sahi Joint Venture successfully met
eligibility requirements and submitted a bid price lower than the poll body’s
approved budget.
The Comelec’s Feb. 6 resolution provides for the use of DRE
and OMR technologies in the Aug. 11 ARMM polls.
The DRE technology will allow Maguindanao voters to vote
through a touch-screen or touch pad while the OMR would require voters from the
rest of the region to fill up paper ballots which will then be counted by
specially designed machines.
About 1.7 million voters in ARMM are expected to vote for one governor, one
vice-governor and 27 members of the Regional Legislative Assembly. ARMM is
composed Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Shariff Kabun-suan, Basilan, Sulu and
Tawi-Tawi. – Gerard Naval
