Background:

• The Comelec en banc is still discussing about the terms of reference of bidding for the machines to be used in the 2010 national and local elections[1].
• The “no contact with supplier policy” will also be strictly implemented by the Comelec Advisory Council to ensure that none of the suppliers will receive favorable conditions. It will also ensure that no politician-connected-person will be allowed to join the bidding[1].
• Malacañang expressed its support for the proposal of televising the bidding as it is pursuant to the administration’s commitment to uphold the “principle of transparency” in government procurement projects[1].
• Independent Senator Richard J. Gordon today called on the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) to be the light that would guide the people in the automation of the May 2010 elections to ensure clean, honest and credible polls[2].
  
• Gordon, author of Republic Act (RA) 9369 or the amended Automated Elections System law, tapped the organization even as he urged the Ateneo School of Law to lead schools in educating the voters on the poll automation next year[2].
  
• It may be recalled the senator pushed for the automation of the 2008 Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) elections which served as a litmus test for the country's capability to adapt to the election automation under RA 9369[2].
• Local and international election observers hailed the success of the ARMM elections which indicated the people are ready for an automated election system to put an end to retail and wholesale cheating that have often marred past elections in the country[2].
  

Bayani Fernando

• Silent

Chiz Escudero

• Senator Francis Escudero, chairman of the committee on ways and means, doubted whether the government could produce the P21 billion[3].
• Escudero said the government could not commit such huge amount unless it sold more assets or forced Congress to approve new tax laws[3].
• “Can automation be achieve within the timetable set by Comelec. I think the prospect that it will be realized is bleak,” Escudero told a media forum[3].
• “We have no money for that. Aside from this, the Comelec has no capability to implement automation less than two years before the polling day.”[3]
  

Dick Gordon

• Independent Senator Richard J. Gordon today lamented that the full automation of the country's election, notably for the May 2010 presidential elections, remains uncertain despite the law that mandates the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to implement it[2].
• Gordon, author of Republic Act (RA) 9369, said the fate of poll automation remains hanging because the Comelec has yet to submit a supplemental budget for Congress' swift action, thereby pave the way for its full implementation for the May 2010 elections[2].
• "Right now, it isn't clear whether automation is possible for the 2010 elections since there is no supplemental budget yet submitted by the Comelec to Congress."[2]
• Gordon had been batting for full poll automation in May 2010 as it would ensure a clean, honest and credible election that would finally bring closure instead of further causing division in the country. He added the present manual system belongs back in the 18th century, being archaic, open to abuse, and the long period it takes to get results encourages "dagdag-bawas" and other forms of electoral fraud[2]. 
• "As seen in the automated ARMM (Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) conducted in August last year, the DRE is more effective because it required less human intervention than the OMR and is thus less prone to human manipulation."[2]
• "The full automation of the 2010 elections is a game-changer because it will not only elevate the country's electoral exercise from third to first world class but also erase public suspicion that the Filipino people's sacrosanct votes would be stolen from them."[2]

Gilbert Teodoro

• Silent

Jejomar Binay

• “What good is an enlightened electorate if their will is again stifled by fraud?”[4]
• He said steps should be taken to keep the police and military from intervening in the conduct of elections[4].
• “These so-called ‘Hello, Garci’ generals were not sanctioned, and were in fact given juicy positions in government,” Binay, who earlier announced his willingness to run in the 2010 poll, said[4].
• He said massive diversion of government funds during the 2004 presidential elections should not be repeated[4].
• “Whoever is anointed by Mrs. Arroyo is certain to benefit from the diversion of government funds.”[4]

Jinggoy Estrada

• Tried to hold off the voting on the measure went along with the majority vote[5]. 

Joker Arroyo

• Voted for the bill of Senator Richard Gordon[5].

Joseph Estrada

• Silent

Kiko Pangilinan

• Senate majority leader Francis Pangilinan on Tuesday called on the President to fill up the vacancies to make the supposed seven-man poll body "fully functional."[6]
• Two poll commissioners echo Pangilinan’s call, saying it will ease the heavy work load they are faced with right now[6].

Loren Legarda

• Sen. Loren Legarda said the Comelec should make sure the machines for poll automation would be fool-proof otherwise the system would be “next to useless.”[7]
• Legarda, who ran for vice president in 2004, claimed she was cheated when she lost to fellow broadcast journalist Noli de Castro[7].
• She said she was concerned about Melo’s admission that the optical mark reader (OMR) technology which the Comelec was proposing to use in the 2010 national elections would not be able to flush out double or multiple registrants[7].
• “In short, flying voters will have a field day running rings around this system for which the Comelec had asked for P13.9 billion in supplemental budget."[7]
• “We cannot have a computerized poll system that can count votes, but which cannot determine whether the votes being counted are authentic or fraudulent.”[7]
• Legarda said that without the capability to weed out bogus votes, the system the Comelec wanted to use would only result in a “garbage in, garbage out” situation[7].
• Legarda said the intention to save on cost was misplaced and that the Comelec could not ask voters to make up for the weakness of the OMR by asking them to squeal on flying voters[7].

Manny Villar

• Voted for the bill of Senator Richard Gordon[8].

Mar Roxas

• Silent

Miriam Santiago

• Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago said the Comelec may have to settle for partial automation due to budgetary constraints[3].

Noli de Castro

• Silent

Pia Cayetano

• Pia Cayetano agreed on the need to pass the supplemental budget for full automation[10].

Ping Lacson

• “I supported the bill of Senator [Richard] Gordon to automate the elections. But we should all be prepared really to have a foolproof automation. Kasi kung i-automate natin, mas madali rin yung dayaang mangyayari.”[2]