It is less than a year before the 2016 presidential elections, but the PCOS machines to be used are still not ready. This is after the Commission on Elections again disqualified Smartmatic-TIM from supplying 23,000 additional PCOS vote-counting machines for the elections because of incomplete documents and because demo units failed to meet technical requirements. Smartmatic has already filed a Motion for Reconsideratino to Comelec. In a statement, Smartmatic Asia president Cesar Flores said the company is confident they will still get the contract.
“We were surprised by the decision of the BAC to disqualify us. As far as we’re concerned, we know that we have complied with all the requirements and are 100-percent certain that we have passed all the technical tests. We are ready, willing, and capable of demonstrating our full technical compliance before any forum,” said Flores.
“We have already filed a Motion for Reconsideration before the BAC and we are confident that it will eventually see that we are, in fact, post-qualified.”
Comelec needs 104,000 Precinct Count Optical Scan machines for the 2016 National Elections but only has 81,000 machines, most of which need preventive maintenance. In case Smartmatic is ultimately disqualified, Comelec will hold a second bidding.
Full Article: Smartmatic appeals disqualification from voting machine deal | News | GMA News Online.