‘Hybrid’ elections better than PCOS

IT is encouraging to know that the Commission on Elections is considering the proposed hybrid election system. We believe the system will ensure transparency without sacrificing the speed of the process. And contrary to the propaganda against it, the hybrid system is unlike the manual voting of old. Instead, voting will still be manual, but canvassing will be automated.

After two national elections, the PCOS machines have failed to win people’s trust. Initially, suspicions stemmed from the Comelec’s refusal to allow a public review of the machines’ source code to check for any manipulation of the software’s programming. In 2013, this issue fueled talk of election rigging as supposedly evidenced by the 60-30-10 pattern in the outcome of the senatorial race.