Gina Dizon
National Aquino International Airport-based taxi driver Andrew Realo is pretty sure there will be cheating during the elections in Mindanao if the power crisis will not be resolved in time for the May 2010 elections.
With elections being automated, this country needs continuous electricity for 24 hours during the crucial Election Day. What assurance is there that there will be no brown-outs on May 10, 2010? As the Department of Energy, National Power Corp. and PSALM grapple with ways how to address the situation, the power crisis is just one of many reasons where cheating may happen during May 2010 elections.
Automated elections does not automatically mean such is a fraud-free method. What security is there to ensure that there will be no, or rather less cheating during the elections? Automated elections make use of machines which the voter will feed in his ballot. How can cheating happen here?
Cheating may happen where the results are already programmed thus ignoring what the ballot contains. Cheating may happen where the ballot and what it contains can be changed probably due to re-programming of the system used.
Anything is possible in this world. If international magician Uri Geller is able to bend spoons using paranormal ability, what more to a machine and computers which can be physically tinkered with.
This is the information technology age where a computer whiz can hack an electronic program. What difference is there with automated elections! That is, cheating may happen as an inside job within the circle among people who are in the know in operating the system.
To minimize chances of cheating, it would be good to pre-test the machine on the day before the voting starts. Just wondering if these machines are also independent of each other so as to ensure somehow that no other program has invaded the machine. At least in the polling precincts, voters are assured somehow that they are not being fooled. So what happens outside of the polling precinct is clear that machine-related flaws may not have been registered here, granting that the machine is fraud- free.
President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo herself has set the pulse of the nation that cheating can be done and get away with it. Hello Garci! So taxi driver Realo was emphatic saying this and also felt apprehensive of his candidate, presidential candidate Noynoy Aquino’s chances of winning and being declared winner. Aquino has appeared number one in all surveys with a wide margin from second placer Manny Villar popularly rumored to be President Gloria Arroyo’s secret candidate.
As most people predict, there will be cheating in the 2010 elections. I think so too, there will be. With a new voting method, vulnerability to flaws and yes, cheating is not remote. Add to this the old ways of cheating- vote buying and flying voters.
With no ballot boxes getting snatched, it may be that already-shaded ballots shall be the sheets fed in the machine and not the voter’s ballot sheet.
It may also be that the machines and other election paraphernalia shall be snatched.
And many other ways of cheating that man is capable of doing.
So how can we stop or rather minimize cheating during the May 2010 elections?
One, orient poll watchers about the Election law and how automated election operates. What are poll watchers watching now that the system used shall be automated machines? This include ‘watching’ how an illiterate elderly is being ‘assisted.’
Two, organize volunteers to campaign against vote buying and flying voters.
Three, be vigilant and report any election-related irregularities to the nearest Commission on Elections office, police station, or a member of the media. Be equipped with your camera or digicam, and ball pen and a sheet of paper to record the facts of the case, and an alert mind.
Four, install power in Mindanao as soon as possible, and other power-problematic areas.
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