Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao general elections was held in the ARMM for the regional governor, vice-governor posts and election of members of the
ARMM Regional Legislative Assembly
ARMM Regional Assembly, also known as ARMM Regional Legislative Assembly (''Pangrehiyong Kapulungang Pambatasan ng ARMM''), was the devolved unicameral regional legislature of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). It was known as the " ...
on August 11, 2008. The
electronic voting
Electronic voting (also known as e-voting) is voting that uses electronic means to either aid or take care of casting and counting ballots.
Depending on the particular implementation, e-voting may use standalone ''electronic voting machines'' ( ...
used is the first in
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...
history. The ₱500 million COMELEC's "ARMM balloting" is a pilot program for the 2010 national polling.
[ inquirer.net, SPECIAL REPORT, High-tech polls: No more ‘Hello Garci’](_blank)
Background
Pursuant to Republic Act No. 9333 in which elections for the posts of Regional Governor and Regional Vice-Governor and members of the
ARMM Regional Legislative Assembly
ARMM Regional Assembly, also known as ARMM Regional Legislative Assembly (''Pangrehiyong Kapulungang Pambatasan ng ARMM''), was the devolved unicameral regional legislature of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). It was known as the " ...
must be held on the second Monday of August for every three years.
Failed tests
ARMM had been used as a testing ground for computerized elections. On September 9, 1996, 42 optical scanners ($15,000 each), from
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...
-based American Information System (AIS) were subject of the Senate Committee experiment led by
Miriam Santiago. It found the machines defective. Again in the May 11, 1998 ARMM elections, the same machines were tested and were found defective, resulting to manual counting next day.
On July 22, 2008, however, the COMELEC, using the present machines, conducted a successful “mock poll" and simulated the actual processes and procedure for the August 11 ARMM election.
COMELEC preparations
The Philippines' first-ever
Electronic voting
Electronic voting (also known as e-voting) is voting that uses electronic means to either aid or take care of casting and counting ballots.
Depending on the particular implementation, e-voting may use standalone ''electronic voting machines'' ( ...
(automated) polls had some 1.6 million
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
-
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
registered
voters
Voting is a method by which a group, such as a meeting or an electorate, can engage for the purpose of making a collective decision or expressing an opinion usually following discussions, debates or election campaigns. Democracies elect holder ...
, who will elect a governor, vice governor and regional legislators for the ARMM. The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) announced that it will be using 3,300
electronic voting machines
An electronic voting machine is a voting machine based on electronics.
Two main technologies exist: '' optical scanning'' and '' direct recording'' (DRE).
Optical scanning
In an optical scan voting system, or marksense, each voter's choices ...
in
Maguindanao and 156 "automated counting machines" (
Electronic voting
Electronic voting (also known as e-voting) is voting that uses electronic means to either aid or take care of casting and counting ballots.
Depending on the particular implementation, e-voting may use standalone ''electronic voting machines'' ( ...
) in Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Shariff Kabunsuan, and Lanao del Sur. It will using 2
technologies
Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, science, ...
, namely Smartmatic-Sahi
Direct Recording Electronic (
DRE voting machine
A DRE voting machine, or direct-recording electronic voting machine, records votes by means of a ballot display provided with mechanical or electro-optical components that can be activated by the voter. These are typically buttons or a touchsc ...
), while
Optical scan voting system
An optical scan voting system is an electronic voting system and uses an optical scanner to read marked paper ballots and tally the results.
History Marksense systems
While mark sense technology dates back to the 1930s and optical mark recogn ...
(Optical Mark Readers)(AVANTE International Technology, Inc.) will be used in the 5 other provinces of the ARMM. These include the 17 automated counting machines brought by Commissioner Nicodemo Ferrer, head of the COMELEC's team in Basilan, to Lamitan and Isabela cities. 11,000 military personnel and 7,000 policemen or a total of 18,000-strong security force were placed to secure the polls. The historical first "fully" automation elections will not be disrupted by power outage, since each machine has a battery packs reserve power good for 16 hours.
DRE or “touch screen electronic voting,” allows voters to "simply touch the pictures of candidates they wish to elect," and were especially for disabled and illiterate voters.
"No writing of names" is the principal feature of OMR machines. Voters have to simply shade the circles beside the candidates’ names. COMELEC has 9 counting machines in 5 precincts. Each can count 100 ballots in a minute. A 24-digit randomly generated
bar code
A barcode or bar code is a method of representing data in a visual, machine-readable form. Initially, barcodes represented data by varying the widths, spacings and sizes of parallel lines. These barcodes, now commonly referred to as linear or o ...
identifies the ballot as emanating from a specific precinct, and the OMR is programmed to count only ballots from designated precincts. The laptop’s keyboard is also locked.
The COMELEC, further, provided: AVANTE OMR SYSTEM CONTINUITY (CONTINGENCY) PLAN 08.08.2008 and SMARTMATIC-SAHI CONTINGENCY PLAN 08.08.200
With these, the COMELEC predicted it would be able to proclaim the winning candidates in less than 36 hours.
The COMELEC, mowever, identified election "hotspots," consisting of 668 barangays (election areas of concern) and 49 (areas of immediate concern).
GMA Network
GMA Network (Global Media Arts or simply GMA) is a Philippine free-to-air television and radio network. It is the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network, Inc. Its first broadcast on television was on October 29, 1961. GMA Network (f ...
's Reporter's Notebook, on August 12, 2008, aired a documentary on the Comelec 2008 "Election Automation."
Limitations
Comelec automation may reduce human intervention in votes counts, but the twin technologies used do not necessarily prevent vote-buying, intimidation, disenfranchisement, and other dirty tricks.
Ballots
A ballot is a device used to cast votes in an election and may be found as a piece of paper or a small ball used in secret voting. It was originally a small ball (see blackballing) used to record decisions made by voters in Italy around the 16t ...
cast cannot be traced by political operators. PPCRV chair Henrietta De Villa said: “In the final analysis, the integrity of the elections depends on the board of election inspectors, the voters, and the politicians, but they can’t easily change the results on the election returns. I would say that the space for cheating has narrowed.”
Accreditation
The COMELEC, in its July 29, 2008 promulgated Resolution, SPP-08-006, 08.06.2008, accredited the
Citizens Coalition For ARMM Electoral Reforms, Inc. (Citizens CARE) as Citizens' Arm of the Commission on Elections in the provinces of
Maguindanao,
Shariff Kabunsuan,
Lanao del Sur
Lanao del Sur ( tl, Timog Lanao; Maranao language, Maranao and ilp, Pagabagatan Ranao), officially the Province of Lanao del Sur, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro, Bangsamoro Autonomous Re ...
,
Basilan
Basilan, officially the Province of Basilan ( cbk, Provincia de Basilan; yka, Wilayah Basilanin; tsg, Wilaya' sin Basilan; fil, Lalawigan ng Basilan), is an island province of the Philippines located primarily in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Reg ...
,
Sulu and
Tawi-Tawi
Tawi-Tawi, officially the Province of Tawi-Tawi ( tl, Lalawigan ng Tawi-Tawi; Tausug: ''Wilaya' sin Tawi-Tawi''; Sinama: ''Jawi Jawi/Jauih Jauih''), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim ...
, in the ARMM and the cities of
Marawi
Marawi, officially the Islamic City of Marawi (Maranao language, Maranao: ''Inged a Marawi''; fil, Islamikong Lungsod ng Marawi), is a 4th class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and capital of the Provinces of th ...
and
Lamitan
Lamitan, officially the City of Lamitan (Chavacano: ''Ciudad de Lamitan''; Yakan: ''Siyudad Lamitanin''; Tausūg: ''Dāira sin Lamitan''; fil, Lungsod ng Lamitan), is a 6th class component city and ''de jure'' capital of the province of Basi ...
, pursuant to Sec. 2(5), Art. IX (c) of the 1987
Constitution of the Philippines and Sec. 52(k) of the Omnibus Election Code. Also, volunteers from the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE), one of Comelec’s accredited citizens’ arms, were deployed in Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao.
Foreign observers
Meanwhile, foreign observers led by Somsri Hananuntasuk, executive director of the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL), and composed of the 22-man foreign delegation from Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Cambodia and Thailand, arrived for their election observation mission.
Fears, tensions
The historical first, however, had been overshadowed by fears of violence due to the failed GRP-
Moro Islamic Liberation Front
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF; ar, ''Jabhat Taḥrīr Moro al-ʾIslāmiyyah'') is a group based in Mindanao seeking an autonomous region of the Moro people from the central government. The group has a presence in the Bangsamoro r ...
(MILF) Peace Panel Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain” of the “Bangsamoro Juridical Entity” or territory deal amid the
Supreme Court of the Philippines' temporary brake (TRO). On August 4, the High Tribunal issued a Temporary Restraining Order directing representatives of the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front “to cease and desist from formally signing the MOA. In the consolidated petitions of officials from the province of North Cotabato represented by Governor Jesus Sacadalan and Vice Governor Emmanuel Piñol (GR No. 183591), as well as that of city officials of Zamboanga represented by Mayor Celso L. Lobregat, Rep. Ma. Isabelle G. Climaco, and Rep. Erico Basilio A. Fabian (GR No. 183752), the Court ordered the Office of the Solicitor General to submit to the Court and to the petitioners copies of the final draft of the MOA not later than August 8, 2008, and scheduled an Oral Argument on August 15, 9 a.m.
Under the failed deal, ARMM would include 700
barangays
A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolitan ...
in North Cotabato,
Lanao del Norte
Lanao del Norte ( Cebuano: ''Amihanang Lanao''; tl, Hilagang Lanao; Maranao: ''Pangotaraan Ranao''), officially the Province of Lanao del Norte, is a province in the Philippines located in the Northern Mindanao region. Its capital is Tubod.
...
and
Zamboanga, causing vehement objections from officials and residents.
Zamboanga City
Zamboanga City, officially the City of Zamboanga (Chavacano and es, Ciudad de Zamboanga, Tausūg: ''Dāira sin Sambuangan'', fil, Lungsod ng Zamboanga, ceb, Dakbayan sa Zamboanga), is a city in the Zamboanga Peninsula region of the Philipp ...
Mayor Celso Lobregat, however, pointed that the expanded MILF homeland deal will cover 1,459 villages, and not just 700 barangays in the agreement’s (Annex A) that would establish the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE). He said Annex B areas were described as “special intervention areas": 40 villages in Zamboanga City, as well as several villages in the provinces of Sarangani, Zamboanga Sibugay, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, and Lanao del Norte.
Accordingly, tensions amid fears erupted just days before the election, when hundreds of MILF rebels sequestered villages in
North Cotabato
Cotabato or North Cotabato ( hil, Aminhan Cotabato; ceb, Amihanang Cotabato; Maguindanaon: ''Pangutaran Kutawatu'', Jawi: ڤڠوترن كوتاواتو; fil, Hilagang Cotabato), officially the Province of Cotabato, is a landlocked province in ...
's 3 towns, burning homes, seizing farm animals and forcing evacuation of 1,500 families. The government gave the rebels ultimatum to clear the villages, and the rebels backed off, in due course.
GRP-MILF MOA
Fr.
Joaquin G. Bernas
Joaquin G. Bernas SJ (July 7, 1932 – March 6, 2021) was a Jesuit priest, lawyer, college professor and writer who was Dean Emeritus of the Ateneo de Manila Law School in Makati, Philippines. He was a member of the 1986 Constitutional Commi ...
opined that: "''The main objective of the MOA is to amend the Organic Act which established the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). The amendment envisions expansion of the geographical area of the ARMM and of its autonomous character. These objectives cannot be achieved by a mere memorandum of agreement. It will involve amending the Organic Act for the ARMM and the Constitution. The current Organic Act for ARMM is not any ordinary law. It is the product of a 3-step process prescribed by the Constitution: the formation of a regional consultative commission whose task was to enlighten the legislators who were to draft the law; drafting of the Organic Act itself by Congress; and the plebiscite conducted among the areas concerned. The original 1989 Organic Act was replaced by the Organic Act of 2001 which incorporated the salient features of the 1996 Peace Agreement entered into between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF). A 2002 decision of the Supreme Court would later make it clear that provisions of the Organic Act can be amended only through the legislative-cum-plebiscite process. The controversial MOA, product of innumerable GRP-MILF dialogues, did not go through a broad consultation. The lack of consultation is now being defended by government as a matter of “executive privilege.” The Organic Act is similar in nature to a Constitution. It is an embodiment of the will of the sovereign people of Mindanao. In the end, those who are pushing for the achievement of the goals of the MOA will have no choice but to feed it into the legislative process. Indeed, when the document begins to be subjected to scrutiny, there will be a lot to debate about''."
The candidates
Exactly 1,516,775 registered voters were officially declared eligible to vote in 1,903 polling centers of the August 11 balloting for a regional governor, vice governor and 24 members of the
ARMM Regional Legislative Assembly
ARMM Regional Assembly, also known as ARMM Regional Legislative Assembly (''Pangrehiyong Kapulungang Pambatasan ng ARMM''), was the devolved unicameral regional legislature of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). It was known as the " ...
. Incumbent Gov. Datu Zaldy Ampatuan, 41, (
Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats party) is seeking reelection, the first governor to do so since ARMM creation in 1990. Ampatuan is challenged by Guimid Panalangin Matalam (
Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino
The Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (), formerly ''Partido ng Masang Pilipino'' (), is a populist political party in the Philippines. It is the political party of former Philippine President Joseph E. Estrada. In the May 1998 presidential election, ...
) and Jupakar Pindah-Asia Arabani, Ismain Berto Ibrahim,
Alvarez Silal Isnaji, Ahmad Darping Nooh and Ali Jumadil Omar—all running as independents. Isnaji is detained in connection the
Ces Drilon
Cecilia Victoria Oreña-Drilon (; born July 8, 1961), simply known as Ces Drilon, is a Filipino broadcast journalist. She presented news and public affairs programs for the News and Current Affairs division of ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation ...
case. 5 candidates joined the vice gubernatorial race while 78 aspire to become regional lawmakers.
Results
For Governor
, -
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=left valign=top, Candidate
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=left valign=top, Party
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=Votes
, -
, align=left,
Zaldy Puti U. Ampatuan
, align=left,
Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats , , align="right", 1,017,179
, -
, align=left,
Alvarez S. Isnaji
, align=left,
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
, , align="right", 22,446
, -
, align=left, Ali J. Omar
, align=left,
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
, , align="right", 16,902
, -
, align=left, Guimid P. Matalam
, align=left,
Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino
The Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (), formerly ''Partido ng Masang Pilipino'' (), is a populist political party in the Philippines. It is the political party of former Philippine President Joseph E. Estrada. In the May 1998 presidential election, ...
, , align="right", 15,283
, -
, align=left, Juprakar P. Arabani
, align=left,
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
, , align="right", 11,648
, -
, align=left, Ismail B. Ibrahim
, align=left,
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
, , align="right", 7,223
, -
, align=left, Ahmad D. Nooh
, align=left,
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
, , align="right", 2,280
, -
, align=left style="background-color:#E9E9E9" colspan=2, Total
, width="75" align="right" style="background-color:#E9E9E9", 1,092,961
For Vice-Governor
, -
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=left valign=top, Candidate
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=left valign=top, Party
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=Votes
, -
, align=left,
, align=left, , , align="right",
, -
, align=left style="background-color:#E9E9E9" colspan=2, Total
, width="75" align="right" style="background-color:#E9E9E9",
Members for the Regional Legislative Assembly
Aftermath
The Comelec accredited Asian Network for Free Elections (Anfrel), through executive director, Thai Somsri Hananuntasuk, reported that in spite of automation, old problems of cheating and vote-buying still persisted. Minors were allowed to vote, poll officials influenced the voters or voted for them, and there were several instances of vote-buying. 22 of its foreign observers from 7countries in
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...
—visited 443 precincts in the ARMM. The machines only prevented cheating in the counting and the canvassing, as it stopped "dagdag-bawas" or the vote padding and shaving of votes, but the machines failed to prevent the way voters are individually influenced—or even forced—to vote for particular candidates. The secrecy of the ballot was also violated since board of election inspectors often assisted voters, indicating their support for particular candidates, and vote-buying was rampant.
abs-cbnnews.com, Anfrel report: Automation of ARMM polls didn't stop vote-buying
/ref>
References
External links
* ttp://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=127933 abs-cbnnews.com, Timeline: ARMM electionbr> Primer: How ARMM poll automation works
{{DEFAULTSORT:Autonomous Region In Muslim Mindanao General Election, 2008
2008 elections in the Philippines
2008 in the Philippines
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...