Comelec approves 'in principle' Internet voting--spokesman Erwin Oliva INQUIRER.net
January 16, 2007
THE COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) has approved "in principle" the Philippines' first Internet voting, a spokesman told INQUIRER.net Tuesday.
"It has been approved in principle," said James Jimenez, although he stressed that the Comelec was hammering out the details of the guidelines as of this writing.
The initial "area of implementation" of the Internet voting system will be Singapore, Jimenez said.
He said Comelec would tap the services of Spanish technology supplier Scytl, in partnership with computer vendor HP.
The Spanish company had conducted a demonstration of its Internet-based voting system last year in the presence of lawmakers and their representatives, several overseas Filipino organizations, and the technical working committee of the poll body.
It showed a secure and simple Internet-based voting system that would allow migrant Filipino workers to cast their votes using computers connected to the Internet.
Comelec Commissioner Florentino Tuason who is in charge of this project was not available for comment as of posting time.
Tuason is commissioner-in-charge of the overseas absentee voting or OAV.
In earlier interviews with INQUIRER.net, Tuason said Comelec expected to spend at least 30 million pesos for this project.
Comelec said previously that it had intended to implement Internet voting in Italy, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
Scytl is a 12-year-old company that provides electronic voting system.
The Internet-based system has been used in countries like Finland, Switzerland, Spain, and soon in Australia and the United Kingdom, Scytl vice president for sales and marketing Pablo Sarrias had said.
Since the system is web-based, governments need not to purchase any equipment and software. They only need to subscribe to a license to use the e-voting service, said Sarrias
The Internet voting system uses 2,040 bits of encryption to secure data, while digital certificates are used to secure votes and authenticate voters. People can vote from a PC connected to an Internet, or from PC terminal set up within a Philippine embassy abroad.
There are about 500,000 registered overseas Filipino voters.
