The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has recently set protocols for the establishment of technical hubs for the replacements of secure digital (SD) cards and repair of defective vote-counting machines (VCMs) on Election Day, May 9.
On Friday, April 22, the poll body released Resolution No. 10782 which establishes 82 hubs for the replacement of defective SD cards and eight technical hubs for the repair of defective VCMs nationwide.
Per the resolution, the technical hubs will be under the direct supervision and control of the regional election director (RED), provincial election supervisor (PES), or election officer (EO) depending on the location of the hub.
“The personnel of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT) shall be the sole personnel in-charge in the replacement of defective SD cards,” the Comelec resolution stated.
Meanwhile, the Comelec field personnel tasked by the RED, with the help of the system provider, will be in charge of the repair of defective VCMs.
The assigned DOST and DICT personnel assigned at technical hubs are responsible for receiving the report from the Comelec Election Monitoring and Action Center (CEMAC) regarding the SD cards on the clustered precinct that will be replaced.
As such, they are responsible for receiving and downloading the file sent by the Technical Group in the Comelec warehouse in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
The DOST and DICT personnel are also in charge of copying the file in the replacement SD cards; testing the replacement SD cards and iButtons; and the turn-over of the replacement SD cards to the Comelec personnel concerned or his/her duly authorized representative.
On the other hand, concerned poll officials such as RED, PES, or EO, depending on where the technical hub is established, account for and should keep an inventory and safekeep defective SD cards.
“It shall also be the duty of the concerned Comelec field officer to account the number of the defective VCMs, and record its serial number and the components replaced or repaired,” the resolution added.
The aforementioned resolution also allows the appointment of two watchers in every technical hub from each candidate, duly registered political party or coalition of political parties, associations, or organizations participating in the Party-list System, and the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) or other accredited citizens' arms. The watchers should serve alternately, it noted.
“However, candidates belonging to the same party or coalition, shall collectively be entitled to one watcher, at any given time.”
Comelec said watchers’ applications will be handled by regional election directors who have electoral jurisdiction of the technical hubs, “except for applications for Region 4-A, which must be filed before the Regional Election Director of the National Capital Region.”
Should the space in the technical hub reserved for watchers be insufficient, the Comelec resolution said preference will be given to the watchers of the PPCRV, dominant majority, and dominant minority parties, as determined by the Commission.
“Watchers of the PPCRV shall be given preferential position closest to the personnel of DOST and/or DICT undertaking the replacement and COMELEC personnel repairing the defective VCM,” it noted.