THE Archdiocesan Commission on Elections Monitoring Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (ACE-COM PPCRV) has raised concerns about the reliability of Automated Counting Machines (ACMs) during the Final Testing and Sealing (FTS) process.
ACE-COM PPCRV spokesperson Atty. Aileen Lizada reported issues after conducting test votes during the FTS at Davao City National High School on Tuesday, May 6, 2025.
She shared that when she shaded two adjoining numbers, the machine failed to read them. However, when she deliberately overvoted by selecting 13 candidates, exceeding the limit, the machine still read and recorded 12.
“Sino ngayon yung magde-decide kung 13 gawin 12, sino magde-decide sino ang hindi kasama sa 12 (So who will now decide whether to make it 13 or 12, and who will decide who is not included in the 12?),” Lizada questioned during a media interview.
To further test the machine’s sensitivity, Lizada marked ballots with different styles — boxes, diagonal lines, dots, stars, and overlined shadings. She clarified that the markings were made solely for testing purposes. Despite the anomalies, she noted that properly shaded names were read correctly by the ACMs, based on field reports from PPCRV members.
The irregularities were reported and are expected to be forwarded to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) for review.
Lizada also noted that some areas were unable to conduct their FTS due to a shortage of ACMs. She said they are waiting for an official Comelec advisory to reschedule testing in those areas.
PPCRV reminded voters to carefully and fully shade the designated circles on their ballots and avoid using other symbols or markings to ensure their votes are counted accurately.
Meanwhile, Comelec-Davao assistant regional director Gay Enumerables clarified through a text message about Atty. Lizada’s concern about overvoting. Enumarables said one specific test mark — labeled “32” — was not counted because it was outside the proper shading area, thus the machine recorded it as only 12 candidates being shaded.
“Hindi natamaan yung circle mismo that is why hindi binasa ng makina (“It didn’t hit the circle, which is why the machine didn’t read it),” she told SunStar Davao.
Enumerables underscored the importance of voters fully shading the correct circles to ensure proper machine recognition.
The 2025 National and Local Elections are set for May 12, with millions of Filipinos expected to cast their votes nationwide. RGP