SC allows disposal of poll materials in Leni’s case

The Supreme Court (SC) has given its go signal to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to dispose of election materials pending the resolution of the poll protest against Vice President Leni Robredo by her rival, former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

The SC, sitting as Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), granted the motion filed by the poll body last August and ordered the Comelec “immediately conduct stripping activities for all the vote counting machines and consolidation and canvass system kits, including the disposal of the VCM (vote counting machine) external batteries.”

In a decision promulgated last Nov. 8 but released only recently, the PET also directed the Comelec to “allow the parties and representatives of the tribunal to observe and comment during the conduct of the closure/stripping activities.”

The tribunal also ordered the poll body and parties in the protest to agree on protocol and procedures to be observed (PPO) during the closure/stripping and backing up activities, including an ocular inspection of the Comelec’s warehouse in Sta. Rosa, Laguna where said activities will be conducted.

The PET also authorized the Comelec to back up the contents of the VCM SD cards of all 92,509 clustered precincts.

The tribunal has earlier issued the PPO which covers all the ballot boxes and their contents, including the ballots, voter’s receipts and election returns, the lists of voters, particularly the Election Day Computerized Voter’s List, and voters registration records, and the books of voters and the audit logs, transmission logs, and all log files.

Also covered by the PPO were all other documents or paraphernalia used in the elections, including the automated election equipment and records such as the VCMs, consolidation canvassing system units, SD cards (main and backup), and the other data storage devices containing electronic data and ballot images, evidencing the conduct and the results of the elections in all of 92,509 clustered precincts that functioned in the last elections.

Apart from the Comelec, the PPO also covered city and municipal treasurers, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Smartmatic-Total Information Management Corp., IP Converge Data Services Inc. and all data centers, Smart Communications Inc., Globe Telecom Inc., PLDT Inc., Digitel Mobile Philippines Inc. (Sun Cellular), and all telecommunications, broadband global area network and very small aperture terminal providers during the last elections.