Comelec on manual elections: Never again

MANILA, Philippines—The Commission on Elections is not likely to heed calls by members of the House of Representatives to go back to the manual system of elections for the May 13 polls.

“The law already requires automation… (unless) they remove the provision saying that automation is mandatory,” said Comelec chairman Sixto Brillantes, referring to Republic Act No. 9369, which  mandates that an automated election system (AES) must be used in subsequent electoral exercises of the country.

On Wednesday, members of the House minority said the Comelec should consider going back to manual elections considering the glitches suffered by the AES during the mock polls over the weekend.