PRESS RELEASE
Center for People Empowerment in Governance (CenPEG)
January 11, 2011On the appointment of new Comelec Commissioners:
ANYBODY – BUT NOBODY FROM COMELECThe Center for People Empowerment in Governance (CenPEG) today, January 11, said anybody – except those from the current Comelec – can be appointed to be the next chairman of the election body or replace those set to retire this year.
Bobby Tuazon, political analyst of CenPEG, said the next Comelec chairman and two members replacing those who are retiring in 2011, should at least be IT-literate. At least one of the replacements for the retiring members should be an IT expert, he said.
The new Comelec commissioners, he said, should show “a track record of independence and non-partisanship, and must not be affiliated with any political party.” There should also be no appointees aged 70 or above. “The mandatory retirement age of justices at 70 should be honored and retired or retiring justices should no longer be appointed,” he added.
The new commissioners should also harness Filipino IT expertise in election technology and veer away from the current practice of outsourcing the election in favor of foreign companies that cannot comply with Philippine election laws, Tuazon, who is also CenPEG director for policy studies, said.
The criteria for the selection of the new Comelec chairman and two other commissioners were based on recommendations discussed during today’s IT-legal workshop of the conveners of Automated Election System Watch (AES Watch) held at the UP NCPAG in Diliman. CenPEG is one of the lead conveners of AES Watch, which is composed of 40 affiliated organizations nationwide.
Selection should be based on these qualifications to avoid the mistakes committed in the preparations and conduct of the first automated elections in May 2010 where the poll body, for its lack of IT expertise, relied so much on the technology provider, Smartmatic, a Venezuelan election marketing company, the CenPEG political analyst also said.
In its 500-page final report on the May 2010 elections released last December, CenPEG revealed disturbing findings including numerous reports of machine breakdowns, transmission failures, voters’ disenfranchisement, and other glitches. “All these can also be attributed to the current Comelec’s poor management aside from failure to embed safety and security measures,” Tuazon said.
Although the whole Comelec should be primed and equipped for the next automated elections, Step 1 can be done by making sure that that only competent, independent, and IT-knowledgeable Comelec officials are appointed by the President, he said. The new Comelec officials should be open and above-board unlike the current commissioners who are not known for transparency.
CenPEG also reiterated its call for the Comelec to release 21 vital election documents, especially the source code whose disclosure had been directed by the Supreme Court (SC) last September 21.
Conveners and members of AES Watch who attended today’s workshop-consultation included: Alfredo Pascual, outgoing spokesperson of the citizens’ watchdog and incoming president of UP; Evi-ta Jimenez, CenPEG executive director; Dr. Pablo Manalastas and Lito Averia, CenPEG IT consultants; Atty. Vicky Loanzo; Gus Lagman of TransparentElections.org; Atty. Harry Roque and Joey Pengson, Concerned Citizens Movement; Prof. Jimmy Caro, dean of the UP computer studies; Toti Casino, Philippine Computer Society; and Dr. Felix Muga II, CenPEG Fellow.
For details, please call:
CenPEG Tel. 9299526
3/F CSWCD Bldg., Magsaysay Avenue UP Diliman,
Quezon City
info@cenpeg.org; cenpeg.info@gmail.com