Comelec on TOR ‘tailor-fitting’ to lessor: ‘We revised TOR 11 times’

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chair George Erwin Garcia and South Korean company Miru Systems Co. Ltd President Chung Jin Bok on Monday, March 11, 2024, sign the contract for the lease of a Full Automation System with Transparency Audit/Count (Fastrac) to be used in the 2025 polls. (Photo from the Comelec)

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday denied allegations that it “tailor-fitted” its terms of reference (TOR) to the capabilities of its automatic elections systems’ lessor, Miru Systems Co. Ltd. (Miru Systems).

In an ambush interview following a voters’ registration event in Quezon City, Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia stressed its TOR for the lease of automated counting machines and other elections paraphernalia was verified, not only by the poll body but by-elections watchdogs, including National Citizens Movement For Free Elections (Namfrel).

READ: House scrutiny of Comelec-South Korea firm poll deal sought  

“Let me be the one to say this – God is my witness. There is no truth in that tailor-fitting [accusation]. Why? We revised the TOR eleven times,” Garcia said.

“Even Namfrel, PPCRV [Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting], Participate [PH], and other organizations know that,” he noted.

He explained that tailoring the TOR to the specifications of Miru Systems would mean that the poll body must have seen the South Korean firm’s machines before drafting the document.

Garcia emphasized, however, that the Miru Systems’ machines, which will be leased to the Comelec, have been customized to fulfill the poll body’s “wishlist.”

“I can proudly say there is no such machine in the whole world because it is a product of our demands. No tailor-fitting was done here,” the Comelec chair said.

ACT Teachers party-list Representative France Castro previously accused the commission of tailoring its TOR to fit the capabilities of Miru Systems.

“Tailoring terms of reference to fit the capabilities of a specific vendor suggests potential corruption within the procurement process, undermining fairness and transparency,” Castro said in a statement on Monday.

Fake news?

As for Miru Systems’ allegedly questionable performance during the elections it handled in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Iraq, Garcia said such allegations were not substantiated by official records.

“The allegations [about its performance] in Congo – we don’t have an official (record). They have only seen it on social media. It is difficult for the Comelec to rely only on the news on social media,” he explained.

He likewise said Miru Systems’ alleged mishandling of the elections in Iraq was also unsubstantiated by facts.

“What if that was fake news? Do we mean for the Comelec to just trust (such reports)? At least, we can point to a UN [United Nations] body who said that the elections in Iraq went well,” Garcia added.

He was referring to a statement that Comelec received from a UN body regarding the polls in Iraq.

READ: Comelec backs House probe into deal with Miru over solon’s worries 

The Comelec chair was citing the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq — a UN political mission providing assistance and support to the government of Iraq. It is not an electoral body.

On Tuesday, the House of Representatives conducted a hearing on Comelec’s P17.9 billion deal with Miru Systems.

Miru representatives, however, did not show up in the proceeding.