Comelec to test Voter Verification System in 2016 polls

MANILA, Philippines–The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to test the Voter Verification System (VVS) for the 2016 national and local polls.

“We will pilot-test these in, I think, mostly Metro Manila,” said Comelec spokesman James Jimenez.

He said the poll body had begun the bidding process for the lease of 23,000 VVS units amounting to more than P700 million.

The VVS units will be used to check a voter’s biometrics data, including fingerprints, to see if he or she is on the voter’s list.

The VVS units will serve as an additional security measure, according to Jimenez.

He said the Comelec had decided to provide an additional security measure to ensure that only registered voters with biometrics data would be able to exercise their right to vote.

But he said the ongoing biometrics data registration being conducted by the Comelec was already an effective means to ensure that no multiple registrants could become flying voters.

“Even without that verification technology, our list of voters would already be cleansed of people with no biometrics by election day,” Jimenez said.

Republic Act No. 10367 mandates that the records of voters who fail to have their biometrics taken will be deactivated.

The Comelec’s ongoing voter’s registration and validation, running until Oct. 31, includes capturing biometrics for new and existing voters.