The Commission on Elections announced today that the actual printing of official ballots bound for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) for the slated August 11, 2008 automated regional polls can now be seen live over the internet.

“We want the public to see how everything is done by the COMELEC with utmost transparency and fairness; keeping in mind that the scheduled ARMM polls will play a major role towards the achievement of a fully modernized elections in the country come 2010,” said COMELEC spokesman James Jimenez.

Jimenez said those interested should log on to http://124.104.101.211 , type in admin in the username box and admin in the password box.

The official ballots that will be seen printed live will be used in the ARMM provinces of Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Lanao del Sur and Shariff Kabunsuan. In those areas, the optical mark reader (OMR) technology will be implemented by the COMELEC wherein voters will be required to fill out a paper ballot which is scanned by specially designed machines.

For her part, COMELEC Printing Committee Head Dir. Esmeralda A. Ladra emphasized that “transparency is one way of enhancing the credibility of the Commission especially in the conduct of elections.”

“We want the people all over the world to see our best efforts, in coordination with the National Printing Office, to preserve the integrity of the ballots, even at its printing stage. This is one of our strategies under Operation MERIT (Modernization and Electoral Reforms with Integrity and Transparency) under the able leadership of Chairman Jose A.R. Melo,” said Ladra. ###

*source: Education and Information Department