Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 5) — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will tackle this month the petition to disqualify technology provider Smartmatic from bidding for the automated election system (AES) for the 2025 elections.
Comelec Chairman George Garcia on Thursday said they will conduct a hearing on October 17 or 18 to discuss the petition and give due process to both parties.
“Gusto namin malaman ano extent o reason ng grounds para i-disqualify yung mismong kumpanya,” he said. “Number two, gusto natin makita side naman ng mismong kumpanya na inaakusahan.”
[Translation: We want to know the extent or reason to disqualify the company. Number two, we want to hear the side of the company being accused.]
In June, former Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) secretary Eliseo Rio, former Comelec commissioner Augusto “Gus” Lagman, Franklin Ysaac, and Leonardo Odono filed a petition seeking to review the qualifications of Smartmatic.
The group cited in the petition the reported irregularities between the transmission logs and reception logs from the precinct level to the Comelec’s transparency server during the 2022 elections.
The poll body chief said Smartmatic has yet to comment on the matter, since it will still release the order for the company to submit its answer.
Garcia reiterated that the poll body cannot ban the technology provider from bidding without any valid reason or formal basis.
“Sa kasalukuyan, lahat ay alegasyon, lahat ay spekulasyon,\” he pointed out. \”Mas maganda po na makita natin ang kabuuan ng lahat kapag nagkaroon na ng full blown hearing.\”
“Wala pa naman tayong basehan pa in the meantime, habang hindi pa dumadating yung pagdinig, para idisqualify yung naturang kumpanya.,” Garcia added.
[Translation: For now, everything is allegation, everything is speculation. It would be better if we see the whole picture when a full-blown hearing is conducted. We have no basis until the hearing happens to disqualify the said company.]
Smartmatic has been the poll body’s technology provider of the automated election system since 2010.
The voting tech firm is among the four companies that have expressed interest to supply the AES for the 2025 national and local elections.
