By Minka Klaudai Tiangco
A Commission on Elections (Comelec) official said they are looking at the possibility of selling vote counting machines (VCMs) that will not be reused in future elections.
Comelec Spokesman James Jimenez speaks during the Manila Bulletin’s Kapihan sa MB forum on Friday.
(JANSEN ROMERO / MANILA BULLETIN)
"One of the things that the Comelec is studying is how to recover value from the machines that we are no longer using. We are exploring various avenues for that. There can be many uses for the machines that we have used," said Comelec Spokesman James Jimenez.
The poll official said many countries, which recently adopted the democratic system in Asia, were interested in automated elections, the VCMs.
"There are many countries that are asking about the Comelec's experience with VCMs," he said in an interview.
"I'm not saying that we already have a line of buyers, but definitely, there are many people interested in automation as an election solution, and maybe we can go that way," he added.
On election day, up to 600 VCMs reportedly malfunctioned. About 1,000 SD cards and server glitches also marred the 2019 elections.