Comelec to proceed with May polls sans source code review

MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will proceed with the May 2013 automated elections even without a source code review, Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. said Wednesday.

Brillantes made the announcement after the Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) submitted its certification report to him which he said was “very positive.”

“At this stage there is no more manual [balloting], no way, manual is already impossible, with the certification issued by TEC we’re going to proceed [with automation], no matter what happens,” Brillantes told reporters.

“[The certification] says the entire process [of voting] is OK, from beginning to end, except that there is no source code for review,” he said.

The Comelec had been asked to allow the source code to undergo a review by independent local IT experts.

The source code however could not be released because of pending legal cases between Dominion Corp. and Smartmatic TIM.

Brillantes however said that the TEC report is enough justification to proceed with the automated polls. He said that the absence of a source code review does not mean that the elections cannot proceed.

He said that the law allows political parties and interested groups to conduct a source code review “but it does not mean that if it is not reviewed, you cannot proceed with the elections. There is no such provision.”

“In 2010 wala naman naka-review pero natuloy pa rin (no one conducted a review but still the elections went on),” he said.

He said that the Comelec en banc will formally receive the report Thursday.