Smartmatic: Polls a success; Critics: What about problems?

Precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machine. FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Technology provider Smartmatic International on Tuesday declared the recent elections in the country a success.

In a statement, Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica said the company  was proud to have been the provider of the automated election system (AES) in the Philippines.

“Thanks to the efficient e-counting machines that captured the voters’ intent, and the secure transmission of data to tallying centers, reliable and legitimate results were made available to the public via the Internet,” said Mugica.

But this was immediately slammed by poll watchdog group Kontra Daya, which accused Smartmatic of misleading the Filipino people and the international community.

Kontra Daya coconvener and Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes said Smartmatic did not mention in its statement the numerous problems reported during the May 13 polls.

Reyes said Smartmatic was now “using the Philippines as a showcase for its international operations.”

“Nothing could be farther from the truth. As we have seen from our experience in 2013, there is neither transparency nor reliability with the Smartmatic system. This foreign company sold us unreliable precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines. Some 18,000 units failed to transmit results on election day,” said Reyes.

In his statement Mugica said, “We are proud to have reciprocated with efficiency and transparency the trust bestowed upon us by the Filipinos.”

This was echoed by Smartmatic president for Asia-Pacific Cesar Flores, who said that the Philippines was fast becoming “a world reference in election administration.”