Comelec drops bidding, awards PCOS deal to Smartmatic THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) has opted to award the contract to refurbish the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines that will be reused in the 2016 national and local polls to Smartmatic-Total Information Management (TIM) Corp., instead of bidding it out. A person privy to the deliberations on the matter said the Comelec en banc voted 5-2 to use the extended warranty offer of Smartmatic–TIM to refurbish the 80,000 PCOS machines and make it ready for next year’s national elections. “We have promulgated the decision already. And it was decided en banc to give the project to Smartmatic-TIM,” the person said. The source added that the Comelec en banc resolution on the PCOS repair issue is set to be published this week. A legal opinion earlier issued by the Comelec-Law Department held that the Comelec can exercise the extended warranty provided by Smartmatic-TIM, as long as it can prove the firm is the only one that can efficiently provide such services. The Smartmatic-TIM also insisted it has exclusive rights over the PCOS machines since they are the manufacturers of the voting technology. It added that it has also acquired “unlimited and perpetual access” to the technology after its legal dispute with the Dominion Voting Systems over their licensing agreement has already been resolved. The source said the Comelec’s decision to award the contract to Smartmatic came after the Comelec–Bids and Awards Committee warned that holding public bidding would hamper their timetable in preparing for the 2016 polls. Election watchdog The Citizens for Clean and Credible Elections (C3E) earlier branded as “outrageous” Smartmatic’s claim that it is the sole provider capable of refurbishing the PCOS. “There are plenty of more than equally capable and willing companies who could provide the same service, and at a fraction of the cost,” said Dave Diwa, C3E spokesman and president of the National Labor Union. Diwa also warned that awarding the contract to Smartmatic may cause political turmoil. “Smartmatic has become very much familiar with the workings of Philippine politics that its system is now vulnerable to political machinations,” Diwa added. businessmirror.ph/comelec-drops-bidding-awards-pcos-deal-to-smartmatic/
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 02:07:13 +0000
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