Comelec: ACM camera will be disabled

THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) has assured the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) that the cameras to be inserted in the automated counting machines (ACMs) will be covered during the voting procedure.

Earlier, poll watchdog group PPCRV raised voter privacy concerns over the insertion of cameras in the vote counting machines.

In a letter on Tuesday, February 27 — which PPCRV made public on Saturday, March 2 — the poll body admitted that the camera placement on the ACM provided by the joint venture of Miru Systems Co. Ltd., Integrated Computer Systems, St. Timothy Construction Corp. and Centerpoint Solutions Technologies Inc. (MIRU-ICS-STCC-CPSTI) is “not ideal.”

“We also note that the placement of the camera on the ACMs for scanning of QR codes is not ideal and may cause apprehension to the voting public with concerns over their privacy,” Comelec Chairman George Garcia said in his letter to PPCRV Chairman Evelyn Singson.

“This Commission will ensure that the camera will not capture images apart from the QR code during the source code review,” he added. “For posterity, the Commission will also ensure that a physical cover will be placed on top of the camera during voting.”

On February 22, in its memo to the Comelec, the PPCRV suggested covering the camera because it might be intrusive.

“While we appreciate that the camera’s function is to scan the QR code of the election returns generated after the voting period and that this QR code enables the visualization and perusal of every single vote in a vote counting machine, the presence of a camera from the onset may be intrusive and cause voter apprehension regarding voter privacy. We respectfully suggest that the camera be hidden or covered and exposed only until such time that it will be used after the polls are closed,” the poll watchdog told the Comelec.