Question & AnswerQ&A (Republic Act No. 8046)
The primary policy is to ensure free, orderly, honest, fair, and credible elections while safeguarding the secrecy and sanctity of the ballot so that election results truly reflect the will of the people.
A Counting Machine is a machine that uses optical scanning, mark sense reading devices, or similar advanced technology to count ballots.
The Commission on Elections is authorized to conduct a nationwide demonstration of a computerized election system and pilot-test it in the March 1996 ARMM elections.
The system must be a standalone machine with a built-in printer for immediate results, use ballot-based voting, have provisions for audit trails, minimize human intervention, and provide adequate safeguards and security measures.
Official ballots shall contain titles of positions, names of candidates alphabetically by surname, uniform type size, spaces for substitution, security marks like watermarks and unique serial numbers, and be printed exclusively by the National Printing Office or Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas under proper security.
If a voter makes a mistake, they should return the ballot to the Board of Election Inspectors to be marked as 'spoiled' and request a replacement. Only one ballot replacement per voter is allowed.
Penalties apply for unauthorized use, tampering, destruction, or theft of official ballots, election returns, statements of votes, certificates of canvass, and system components like counting machines, memory packs, or computer sets, regardless of whether such acts affect electoral outcomes.
The Election Officer and the Municipal or Provincial Treasurer as deputy of the Commission shall have joint custody and accountability of official ballots, election documents, and ballot boxes after the election.
In case of discrepancy, the tape printout shall prevail. If the certificate of canvass conflicts with the election returns, the election returns shall prevail.
The Oversight Committee, composed of representatives from the Senate, House of Representatives, and the Commission on Elections, is tasked to monitor and evaluate the implementation of this Act and submit a report within 90 days from the election date.