automated elections on 2010, do U agree or NO?
By rdsantos
@rdsantos (320)
Philippines
October 7, 2009 12:17am CST
Philippines will have its very first automated election on 2010, is it really worth it? or would it resolve the undying problem of electoral fraud,ballot buying,etc.
at first of hearing this news is said it was great, but after the process it turns out that it wouldn't resolve anything but only lessen the people who will count the votes (good for the volunteer teachers). the thing is they will just automate the counting not the whole election process, where is the security there if people are still going to write in the ballot papers on drop it on the ballot box?.
tell me if im wrong!
2 people like this
10 responses
@Fulltank (2882)
• Philippines
7 Oct 09
Agree. The idea of automated election is the best. It will surely change the old ways on how election goes here in the Philippines. But the real question to ask is "Does the Philippines fully ready and prepared to conduct an automated election in 2010". If yes, then thats a very good news. If no, then we could just let those unscrupulous politicians to make election cheating on the touch of their hands. Remember you just add one additional number under your votes and viola!, you already won the election.
1 person likes this
@rsa101 (37952)
• Philippines
7 Oct 09
I am imagining that the voting would still be ballot based and not the ones where you are pressing like that of an atm machine. We still have a ballot to fill in an check our choices. What is automated is the way the votes will be counted. I think the machine will read the ballot and count it. No more like those that uses the stick counting on the blackboard and manual filling in of the count on a form provided for by Comelec.
Election can finish much more faster than the old system where the teachers count it one by one.
@rdsantos (320)
• Philippines
7 Oct 09
i also agree with this it's another milestone if they can call it in our history, it's just that they made it so simple like they didn't add more to justify the need for us to have this automation process, a lot of discussions and debates were made because of lack of security.
Thanks for the rep!
@rsa101 (37952)
• Philippines
7 Oct 09
Well I guess it will hasten the process of counting preventing any attempts to manipulate the votes in the process. Automated elections are I think necessary to prevent manual errors caused by of coursed overworked teachers in counting and also the attempts of candidates to manipulate the votes by trying to tinker with manual counting.
What do you expect from automated election? Of course there is still human intervention with it. The voter will still have to go to the polls and choose manually his choice on a hard copy and will have to drop it in ballot boxes. i think that is also being done in the US elections.
@rdsantos (320)
• Philippines
7 Oct 09
i was actually thinking that since they call it automated elections people would just sit there face the computer and select the people they would like to vote,that would be very convenient and hassle free,realtime update is possible, if im not mistaken US elections did internet voting, i guess were just scared enough doing such thing or some people there really don't want this since they won't profit from it, you know!.
Thanks for the input!
1 person likes this
@rsa101 (37952)
• Philippines
7 Oct 09
I think that was the original plan but they resorted back to the paper voting since there are still many voters who are computer literate. They experience this with Mindanao elections where they were the first ones to experience the automated elections. I really think that online voting is still not reliable especially in our place. It can be hacked and still votes manipulated. Going to the polls is still the best thing since you yourself is the one that shows during the election and you could prove that the you are yourself. I guess time will come that we can vote like that you are dreaming but this is the first step towards that direction. If we keep on postponing the automated election from being adopted we are just giving more time for the candidates to think of more better ways to cheat the manual voting we have.
With the automated election this scrupulous candidates will have to rethink their strategies again. This system is still not a fool proof I guess but this is much better option than the manual election we have.
@owelm0408 (1011)
• Philippines
8 Oct 09
Government did a good decision in making this election to be automated. I believe they should have done this long ago. When cheating cannot be totally removed, at least minimizing it will have a great impact in pursuit of a clean, honest election.
@iceydon (342)
• Philippines
8 Oct 09
Lets try it.There are always lapses in doing it for the first time.
If it fails then we can really see those faces of politicians beaming with big big smiles.They can still cling on their power just like the old days.
If it goes as planned. At least Gloria can be proud that during her term the first automated election took place.
But having it have risks. Automated election could be effective in urban areas. But not in those far flung areas that don't even have electricity.
And knowing the talent of pinoys in making things happen no doubt automated election will be a big business for those with criminal minds.
@dens61 (130)
• Philippines
16 Oct 09
I don't think that automation will forever erase the possibility of cheating in the elections. Cheating is already ingrained in the politicians brains just to win. If not the politicians themselves, their cohorts will move heaven and earth to win the elections for their own selfish agenda. And if after all the cheating they still don't win, they declare that they were cheated! These are the politicians of today. And why do you think they will spend millions of pesos just to land an elective post that pays a salary lower than executives? Do they really like to serve the country and their countrymen? Tell it to the marines!
@nra091501 (173)
• Philippines
8 Oct 09
in my opinion, i don't think automated election will solve election fraud. but yes it will at least lessen the time spent on counting the ballots. It will not be done manually this time but by the scanner. But I also think it's easier to cheat now because all the power-crazed politician will have to do is to pay a software developer to alter the result of a scanned ballot. You see, when the ballot is scanned a result will be generated by the scanner. The program, of course will be coming from the people who provided those scanners. That program, if not checked, may give different result for the overall counting.
@KrauseHome (36448)
• United States
17 Oct 09
Well, here in the Seattle, WA USA area they have turned the Ballots to where it is only Mail in ballots where a lot of other places do both mail in, or in person. I would think less Fraud is done when you can do it in the prescence of others, but when counting the Ballots they now have a group who is there to watch over this to make sure it is secure as well. But when they went to mail in ballots they took a way some of the ways to earn some extra $$ for people for sure.
@sharlionse (739)
• Philippines
7 Oct 09
i think it's okay but we have a very large population of computer illiterate people, how about that? Those living in the outskirts will be accompanied by the facilitators, what if that may affect their vote?
@jules67 (2788)
• Philippines
7 Oct 09
It is about time that we have the elections automated. Using the manual balloting all the more makes it prone to cheating. We are already in the cyber age where everything is done at an instant. Why don't we make use of it so that we can advance and make the time useful. Maybe it is just the counting of the ballots, but I would say that this is still a great step for us. Let us try to do little or doable advance steps than stay in a backward or ancient position.
@SSlimJim (30)
• United States
8 Oct 09
I don't agree. If you know a lot about the internet and computers like I do you know there are always bugs and hackers. With a hacker he could change the total amount by a bunch. Someone counting would hopefully only mess up once or twice.
*Just a thought.
