Lente replaces Namfrel as Comelec partner

The conduct of the random manual audit (RMA) for the midterms will continue as scheduled as the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said on Friday it had already found a replacement for the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel), which backed out barely two weeks before Election Day.

Comelec Commissioner Luie Tito Guia said Friday that the  Legal Network for Truthful Elections (Lente) would be the lead convener for the RMA, which will check the accuracy of the vote counting machines to ensure that no error is embedded into the system.

Lente executive director Rona Caritos said they agreed to take on the responsibility left behind by Namfrel since the 12-day process did not require them to deploy as many volunteers.

“We took on the task despite the time limitations because the RMA is a necessary process and it ensures credibility in the elections. So as much as we don’t like to be part of it, we saw the need to take part to ensure the credibility of the process, and also for transparency and inclusiveness,” Caritos said.

She noted that while Lente would deploy roughly 500 of its members  nationwide to serve as supervisors to the teachers and auditors tapped by Comelec, they were  still open to accept volunteers from nonpartisan groups.