Comelec back at 3 servers for transmission of poll results

Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) decided to return to using three servers for the transmission of the election results, Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes said Wednesday.

Brillantes said their decision reached in an en banc session was based on the recommendations by the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee (JCOC) on the Automated Election System in a previous hearing.

He said that they voted unanimously to ratify the recommendation of the JCOC and would now be using three servers, similar to what was done in the 2010 elections.

The third server will send election results to election watchdogs such as the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP), Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) or National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel).

The Comelec previously decided to drop the third server in a move that earned the ire of JCOC Vice Chairman Alan Peter Cayetano.

“We installed three servers in 2010 because of the 99.9% guarantee it provided. With just two servers, you will not have that. Having only two servers gives the impression that there can be manipulation in the 2013 elections,” Cayetano said in the previous hearing.