Mindanao Daily NEWS business . northmin . caraga . davao Bringing Good News of Mindanao
P15.00
SOON TO ACCEPT WE accept
TARPS STICKERS
Mindanao Daily TARPS-STICKERS-NEWS
0915-563-6246
Why is the Comelec favoring Smartmatic? – poll watchdog Volume IV, No. 069 web portal: www.mindanaodailynews.com
By MARYA SALAMAT of Bulatlat.com
FOR the 2016 elections, Filipinos have the option to use an automated poll system that its developers and supporters described as cheaper, transparent, auditable, secure and a product of Filipino ingenuity. It thus seems to address the complaints and criticisms leveled against the PCOS-
based system that had been used twice in the country. “The Philippines is one of the biggest exporters of software to developed countries, why do we have to buy technology from foreigners especially from foreigners not known for it?” former Comelec Commissioner Gus Lagman asked at a press conference last month. He and his colleagues from election watchdogs unveiled
OCD: Davao City needs quake impact reduction study
Sat-Sun
their proposed alternative systems for automated polls. Earlier, one of their proposals, the so-called “hybrid” poll system, has been rejected by the Comelec, which cited the law’s mandate for fully automated polls. Their latest proposal is the fully automated election system dubbed as TAPAT. But when Comelec chief Andres Bautista announced this week that they are open
August 8-9, 2015
to two options, it excluded TAPAT. The Comelec’s two options are both cornered by foreign vendor Smartmatic: for the refurbishment of more than 80,000 PCOS machines and for the lease or procurement of new PCOS-like OMR (Optical Mark Reader). Seeking to replace Smartmatic’s PCOS, OMR TAPAT is conceived and
A1
engineered as an alternative to foreign provider Smartmatic’s PCOS, and their new OMR (Optical Mark Reader) offered, too, by Smartmatic. Developed by Filipino computer engineers Arnold and Angelo Villasanta, TAPAT’s poll machine was first presented during a press conference early last month. The second was in July 20, in a mock election held at
Pamantasang Lungsod ng Maynila, where superstar Nora Aunor was among the 200 “voters.” She praised TAPAT citing the ease of use and the fact that she saw how her votes were recorded and counted. According to the developers and supporters of TAPAT election system, it is simple to use; it offers options to correct or See watchdog, page A11
BIOMETRICS REGISTRATION AT SM ON AUGUST 10
‘No bio, no boto’
By Antonio L. Colina IV of MindaNews
DAVAO City––Aside from a disaster management plan, the city needs an impact reduction study that will provide estimates on the number of people who would be killed or injured in case a 7.2-magnitude earthquake occurs, an official of the Office Civil Defense (OCD) XI said. Speaking at the Kapihan sa NCCC Mall on Friday, OCD XI director Liza Mazo said the city lacks a study like the “Metropolitan Manila Earthquake Impact Reduction Study”. Done by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the study estimated around 34,000 deaths and 18,000 injured people if a strong quake hits Metro Manila. The metropolis has been girding for the “Big One,” See study, page A11
Tailings from mining activities flow into a stream in Sibutad, Zamboanga del Norte. Environment groups have called for a stop to mining ventures in Mindanao. MindaNews file photo by H. Marcos C. Mordeno
Activist nun wins human rights award from German city MALAYBALAY City--A Mindanao-based Catholic nun was named last month to the 2015 Weimar Award for Human Rights for her involvement in human rights defense and advocacy for the environment, the Sisters
Association in Mindanao (Samin) said in a statement Thursday. The city council of Weimar in Germany decided on July 8 to confer the award to Sr. Stella Matutina based on the recommendation by
Missio, an international aid organization, Samin said. “The Filipina nun pits herself against serious human rights violations in her homeland that occur in connection with the gold See HUMAN, page A11
THE SM City Cagayan de Oro will be hosting the Commission on Election’s No Bio, No Boto voter’s biometrics registration on August 10 to 12 at the Second Floor, beside Abrillo during mall hours. The biometrics registration at the mall is expected to bring the COMELEC services more accessible to the public. Cagayan de Oro residents may simply go to the registration booth with a valid ID reflecting their current addresses. SM Supermalls and Walter Mart Community Malls have inked an agreement with the COMELEC to conduct satellite registration booth nationwide. The voter’s registration and biometrics validation for the 2016 national and local elections are ongoing until October 31 at the COMELEC offices. For inquiries, call 8592885 to 88 and like SM City Cagayan de Oro on Facebook for event and promo updates.