POLL PREPARATIONS ON TRACK, ELECTION COMMISSION

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 000281 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/10/2020 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM RP SUBJECT: POLL PREPARATIONS ON TRACK, ELECTION COMMISSION CHAIR ASSURES CHARGE Classified By: Charge d'Affaires, a.i. Leslie A. Bassett, reason: 1.4 ( b) and (d). SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Chairman Jose Melo told the Charge d'Affaires on February 8 that preparations for th Philippines' first automated national election Ma 10 were proceeding well. Melo was satisfied wih the ongoing delivery and testing of SmartMaticmachines for scanning ballots and transmitting elction results. Through mock elections and publi service announcements, COMELEC is seeking to intill greater public confidence in and awareness f automated election procedures. Melo appreciated cooperation with the NGO International Foundationfor Election Systems (IFES) and was willing to asist other international NGOs and the Embassy's wn observer mission. The Autonomous Region in Mulim Mindanao (ARMM) will hold its elections on te same day as the rest of the Philippines, despit earlier speculation COMELEC would organize earlie elections in the ARMM. End Summary. COMELECU.S. COOPERATION -------------- ¶2. C) On February 8, the last day before the start ofthe formal campaign period for upcoming national lections, the Charge d'Affaires called on Commision on Elections (COMELEC) Chairman Jose Melo. he Charge congratulated Melo on February 6 mock lections that had provided COMELEC an opportunit to educate the public further on the use of new ptical scanners; the mock elections appeared largey successful, according to press reports and a UAID observer. The Charge explained that the USG,through USAID, was providing support for the upcming elections. ¶3. (C) The Charge thanked Melo fr COMELEC's providing Mission diplomatic securit personnel and U.S. forces coveredby the Visiting Forces Agreement with exemptions from the government's strictly enforced weapons ban for the formal election period. The Charge also previewed a request for COMELEC accreditation of a U.S. Embassy election observation mission and noted that the Carter Center and the National Democratic Institute might also request observer status. Melo welcomed these requests and expressed strong appreciation for USAID grantee IFES Philippines. SMARTMATIC MACHINES -------------- ¶4. (C) Melo explained that U.S. company SysTest, contracted by COMELEC, was evaluating the SmartMatic machines for scanning ballots and transmitting vote tallies. SysTest would provide COMELEC with a report the following day. By February 22, Melo anticipated, SysTest would provide COMELEC with formal certification of the SmartMatic systems. (Note: A SysTest executive -- protect -- told us on February 12 that SysTest's February 9 report had concluded that SmartMatic's systems had minor shortcomings that should not affect system operations. The executive said SysTest is continuing testing the machines' accuracy, capacity, and stress limitations, but SysTest's formal certification appeared likely. End note.) Melo lamented that some Filipino legislators now were expressing a preference for the more familiar voting method, in which voters write by hand the names of their candidates, but some of those same legislators bore responsibility for the law requiring a transition to automated vote-counting. ¶5. (C) Melo explained that, of the of 82,000 SmartMatic units ordered for the elections, almost 50,000 had arrived in the Philippines and other 20,000 were en route. SmartMatic had assured that it would deliver all the units by February 21. COMELEC had already received associated materials, such as batteries and laptop computers. ¶6. (C) The Charge asked about newspaper reports that there had been an influx into the Philippines of thousands of jammers of wireless transmissions. Melo dismissed the reports, noting that it might be possible to jam some transmissions for some period of time, but it would not be possible to transmit false results to COMELEC's servers, and the poll workers would eventually be able to transmit their results -- either by moving the SmartMatic machines or by using a Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) that SmartMatic had established in order to provide an alternate means of MANILA 00000281 002 OF 002 transmission for areas lacking standard wireless network coverage. (Note: Separately, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency officials told the Embassy that they did not believe the jammers mentioned in press reports represented a serious threat to the transmission of election results. End Note.) ¶7. (C) Melo further explained that concerns about automated vote-tallying appeared overblown. COMELEC had fallback options. If necessary, polling place officials could resort to manual ballot-counting, since the SmartMatic machines would retain the voters' marked ballots in a ballot box. Printed copies of the returns in voting precincts would be posted and distributed to candidates' representatives. ¶8. (C) COMELEC had begun printing ballots, Melo explained. Although the ultimate eligibility of some candidates (such as former President Joseph Estrada) remained unresolved as legal challenges continued, COMELEC's schedule would not allow further delay of ballot-printing. (Separately, a COMELEC official told foreign diplomats that the SmartMatic scanners will disregard votes for candidates disqualified prior to election day; the machines will not produce a tally of votes for disqualified candidates.) NO EARLY ELECTION IN THE SOUTH -------------- ¶9. (C) Melo expressed regret that the Senate had gone into recess without approving legislation that would have provided for early elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). The ARMM elections would take place on May 10, as in the rest of the Philippines. When the Charge asked about security concerns, Melo noted that units of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the police would be deputized by COMELEC to provide security. Melo did not appear particularly concerned about security. VOTER EDUCATION -------------- ¶10. (C) Voter education would soon increase, Melo said, through the distribution of informative video discs as well as through radio and television spots broadcast per a COMELEC agreement with the Philippine Information Agency. Events such as the recent mock elections would also inspire greater voter awareness. Many participants in the mock elections remarked that they had found it simple and easy to use the SmartMatic systems. COMELEC would undertake more comprehensive training of poll workers closer to election day. COMMENT -------------- ¶11. (C) Melo's confidence was reassuring, but there is still a need for continued aggressive voter education and poll worker training efforts. Mission will continue to work closely with NGO's and COMELEC to encourage them to maintain the demanding pace of preparations needed to overcome the serious logistical challenges remaining before the May 10 elections. BASSETT