Manila, Philippines – Smartmatic Philippines, on Saturday, has once again urged the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to reject the petition seeking to disqualify the firm from participating in the bidding process for the automated elections in 2025. The technology provider is defending its integrity and the accuracy of its systems in the face of challenges regarding its role in the electoral process.
According to Philippines News Agency, the company described the accusations against it as unfounded and lacking in evidence. The firm asserted that the petitioners' motives appear to be both political, aimed at delegitimizing the government, and commercial, in favor of Smartmatic's competitors. The company emphasized that no evidence of vote discrepancy has been demonstrated by the petitioners.
Smartmatic also highlighted the reliability of the automated election system (AES) used in the previous national polls. The accuracy of the system, the company noted, has been consistently verified by Comelec’s records, Random Manual Audits, and independent audits and recounts conducted by election watchdogs like LENTE (Legal Network for Truthful Elections) and PPCRV (Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting).
The firm added that the Comelec has the necessary resources and facts to confirm the election results, thereby upholding the legitimacy of elected leaders in the Philippines, including President Marcos and local officials.
Smartmatic also defended its 23-year history, stating that it has not been indicted in any country regarding elections or contracts. The company refuted what it called 'false claims' and suggested that the public could verify its record on the US Department of Justice website by searching for Comelec or Smartmatic.
The disqualification petition against Smartmatic was filed in June by former Department of Information and Communications Technology chief Eliseo Rio Jr., former Comelec commissioner Augusto Lagman, Franklin Fayloga Ysaac, and Leonardo Odono. The petitioners allege that Smartmatic failed to meet certain minimum system capabilities during the 2022 elections, resulting in serious irregularities in the transmission and receipt of election returns.
The seven-member Commission en banc has not yet issued a decision on the petition. The bidding process for the AES for the 2025 midterm national elections, valued at PHP18.8 billion, is scheduled with the submission of bidding documents from November 28 to December 12.