COMELEC acting Chairman Christian Robert Lim (UNTV News)
MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) admitted they are already delayed with their preparations for the 2016 national elections.
One of the already delayed projects is the procurement of 23,000 MOR voting machines, the contract for which should have been awarded already this month.
“Two months delayed. (Is there a domino effect?) Yes, there is, as I said earlier it will affect procurements, warehousing, transmission, everything,” COMELEC acting Chairman Christian Robert Lim said.
Earlier, COMELEC Bids and Awards Committee disqualified Indra Sistemas and Smartmatic because their financial bid proposals did not match the requirements.
The motions for reconsiderations of the two companies are now pending before the BAC.
If the BAC’s original decision is affirmed, however, it will result in a re-bidding which will again consume some time.
According to Lim, they will work diligently to beat the deadline and they will extend working hours, if necessary.
“Our customization could be cut down from 6 months to 4 months, we have to work overtime,” he said.
The COMELEC further admitted that they find it difficult especially because only four commissioners were left.
Sometimes, this is also the reason why it took them long to come up with a decision.
“(How difficult it is when there are only four of you?) It’s really difficult because the moment somebody dissented, nothing will happen, there will be no action,” Lim said.
Until now, a new COMELEC chairman is yet to be appointed to replace retired Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. (Grace Casin / UNTV News)