ILOILO City – New automated counting machines (ACM) to be used in the May 2025 midterm elections are reliable, according to the Commission on Elections (Comelec), dismissing any concerns of tampering.
“Our machines are tamper-proof as far as Comelec is concerned. I can say that with 101 percent confidence,” said Comelec Region 6 director, Atty. Dennis Ausan.
Comelec will roll out an ACM roadshow across Western Visayas beginning in the third week of November, with plans to continue through January 31, 2025.
The initiative seeks to familiarize stakeholders with the new ACMs, previously known as vote counting machines (VCMs) or precinct count optical scanners (PCOS), before their use in the upcoming May 2025 elections.
“We’ve incorporated many enhancements into these machines,” Ausan said. “While the basic voting process — shading the ballot and feeding it into the machine — remains the same, the improvements in transparency warrant this extensive roadshow.”
Once ACM units arrive, the Office of the Election Officers (OEOs) will conduct roadshow presentations.
Ausan highlighted the importance of these roadshows to help voters understand the enhancements made to the ACMs, which address several issues raised in past elections.
One key enhancement includes a larger screen display, allowing voters to see their ballot as it is fed into the machine. If a voter selects fewer candidates than allowed — such as only voting for 10 senators instead of 12 — the machine can prompt them to retrieve the ballot. However, any marks cannot be altered once submitted.
Another significant improvement is the generation of receipts that can be scanned via QR code, providing watchers with a direct view of the voter’s selections, ensuring the receipt aligns with the actual ballot cast.
“This feature enhances transparency, allowing watchers and party representatives to confirm that the ballot’s content matches the receipt,” Ausan explained.
The ACMs will include several other upgrades, and even election officers will undergo training from November 19 to 21 during a convention in Metro Manila to become fully acquainted with the machines.
For the roadshow, a total of 102 ACMs will be deployed across Panay Island and Guimaras, with each of the region’s 101 local government units (LGUs) receiving one machine for demonstration purposes.
An additional ACM will remain at the Comelec Regional Office for a separate roadshow in selected areas, offices, and institutions.
Each LGU will have its own ACM for roadshow demonstrations, a notable improvement from previous elections where only two or three machines were available for regional presentations.
The roadshow will target all 101 LGUs in Panay and Guimaras, covering government offices, schools, and civic organizations. During these sessions, stakeholders will have a hands-on experience with the ACMs through mock elections, helping them understand the updated features.
Comelec also announced that the provider responsible for producing the 110,000 ACMs required for the May 2025 elections is two months ahead of schedule, with only around 30,000 units remaining to be shipped to the Philippines./PN
