Electoral lessons

It was a good thing that the Mega Pacific eSolution, Inc. (MPEI) finally broke its silence over the controversial issue of the automated counting machines that has been hounding the company and the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

The MPEI is the lead corporation of the Mega Pacific Consortium (MPC), which won the bidding for the automated counting machines (ACM) project of the Comelec but later nullified by the Supreme Court (SC) for some technical issues.

The ACMs are now sitting idly in the Comelec warehouse and the supposed modernization of election has been left hanging. But I certainly agree with lawyer Alfredo V. Lazaro Jr., spokesman for MPEI, when he said that it was not their fault that government opted not to use the machines.

As a winning bidder, the MPEI representing the consortium complied with all the requirements leading to the delivery of 1,991 units of the machines as stated in their contract with the Comelec.

Looking further at what really transpired before and after the bidding procedures up to the time when the contract was awarded to the MPEI, it shows that it participated as a regular bidder which complied with the bidding rules and regulations set by the poll body.

All the records also show that between the two competing bidders that made it to the Comelec’s shortlist, it was the MPEI which indeed tendered the most advantageous offer to the government.

Although there were so many issues that had cropped up after the contract was awarded to MPEI, the main points raised were the eligibility of MPEI to participate in the bidding and the reliability of the counting machines.

On several occasions, the MPEI had already answered them. There was a consortium, the MPC for that matter, when it submitted a bid to the Comelec. The consortium is an aggrupation of corporations joined together for a single purpose, with all its members taking a risk for the undertaking. This made them qualified to bid.

The reliability and accuracy of the counting machines became another issue. According to a report from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), initial tests showed that the machines from MPC passed in 20 out of 27 key requirements, while the other competing bidder passed only five of the 27.

But the retests and verifications tests – a complete retest, in fact – showed otherwise. A complete retest required a longer time compared to the verification tests on accuracy performance. It was carried out after analyzing the causes of non-conforming accuracy rating using statistical analysis and investigation on the so-called assignable causes of variation.

During the retests, the DOST found out that improper shading of ballots was a major cause. Wrong orientation in feeding the ballots (inverted) was also suspected as another cause though this was not fully established.

After considering the findings, the second verification tests on machines submitted by MPC yielded 100 percent accuracy rating for all three environmental conditions – cold, normal and harsh. The other competing bidder, on the other hand, after adjusting to the issue of improper shading of ballots and wrong orientation in feeding the ballot, did not yield a passing rating under the harsh conditions.

The testing concluded that between the two competing bidders, it was the MPC’s automated counting machines that were technically more superior.

It was the DOST which has the technical capability to determine which equipment has better reliability and accuracy, apart from being tasked to do the required testing under the rules and procedures.

This could be the reason why former Chief Justice Hilario Davide concurred with the opinion of Justice Jose Vitug for the dismissal of the case against MPEI. They said that the Supreme Court is not a trier of facts and a review of evidence is not proper in a certiorari, prohibition or mandamus proceeding.

Nonetheless, things had happened and the supposed modernization plan for our electoral system was jeopardized. It is also unfortunate that we are again gearing up for the elections season next year yet our supposed plan to modernize our electoral system is left hanging; and it only means that we must be contented with what we have right now – an antiquated electoral system.

But we must also be wary about the backlash of these developments to the business climate and generally, to our economy. Changing policies coupled with the kind of judicial system we have scare away investors. We have seen them happen in many high profile cases and the government must do something about it.

Network Woes

Employees of this government-sequestered TV station have been demoralized for the longest time. You see, the senior executives running the station are said to be a bunch of losers who don‚t seem to know what they are supposed to be doing in the network˜that is, to run it. At the helm is a political appointee who has not really earned precious stripes in the industry. Providing "able" assistance are two certified senior citizens: a self-righteous general manager, who‚s had her own share of company scandals and a production head who is said to be so indecisive and clingy to her post, she‚d hurriedly kill her own good projects if any of her bosses wants freed airtime. Another ageing non-performing asset is the head of sales, who has not really closed a significant deal for the company except for a block sale of some of the station’s airtime.

The poor people working in this network are obviously the victims of management‚s inefficiencies. Consider these marks of injustice: delayed talent fees, fast deteriorating network facilities, unpaid salaries and retirement pay, and yes, even the unimaginable for a broadcasting firm–disconnected telephone lines. Just to prove this point, try calling their public affairs office and chances are, you’ll be answered by finance. Why? The two departments are actually sharing just one phone line. Now if you happen to watch some BIR shows running in the station, do not be surprised. The company has reportedly not been paying enough taxes in recent years. The situation has supposedly gotten so bad, the institution has had several news department heads joining and leaving over the last six months. Talk about a fast turnover,

It thus makes us wonder how this station has so far afforded the talent fees of some "rejects" of a major firm, who have slowly been doing an exodus to this network. Now if you’re a news reporter earning about P700 per day (yes, that’s how much they earn for standing by for news at least about 12 hours a day. Worse, that rate is divisible by two depending on which newscast their reports will be used), how will you feel if you know some hotshot-retiree from a bigger network is now eating up money that should rightfully go to your raise?

I fully understand why everyone in this tv network is praying so hard that government‚s privatization plans for their company pushes through. Let us join them in their prayer.

Viewpoint

Onofre Consolacion Jr. reacts to our column on the BCDA: "In one of your columns, you referred to Filadelfo Singson Rojas as a former minor employee of a bank owned by Amb. Alfonso Yuchengco which is of course RCBC. In a subsequent column you referred to Mr. Rojas as a former junior officer of RCBC. Mr. Rojas was never a former minor employee or junior officer of RCBC. At the time of his retirement, he was a senior vice president. He is an active member of the Rotary Club of Makati, Canlubang Golf and Country Club and resides at the upscale Magallanes Village in Makati. He comes from a prominent family in Ilocos Sur and among his more prominent relatives are former Central Bank Governor Gabriel Singson, Ilocos Sur Gov. Chavit Singson, and Ilocos Sur 2nd Dist. representive Cong. Eric Singson. He is married to a daughter of the late Atty. Meer who was chairman or vice chairman of RCBC in the 70s.How do I know all of the above? Well, we were associates in RCBC before our retirement."

Meanwhile, Robert Mercado of Pasig City who hates insurance agents with a passion, is a changed man. He writes about how Sun Life has managed not to piss off shoppers when its agents approach prospective clients inside malls:

"It happened to weeks ago in Glorietta when a tall girl in a really short skirt rolled up to me from behind on a scooter. I was lured into a futuristic booth where I was asked to fill out the raffle stub attached to the flyer handed to me. Later, another girl invited me to have my picture taken. She then asked me questions that were needed to project my future image. After entering commands onto the program to match the answers I had just given, a series of images of my future. They have this special computer program called the 111 Hot Enough Financial Calculator. Tricia began to sell to me the idea of having my savings habits checked in order to see if I can afford that so called „lifestyle change" to a better looking and healthier future. I obliged and answered another, much longer series of questions.

"It took about five minutes for her to encode all the data and generate a table that showed my spending habit alongside my savings. I noticed a sense of urgency arise within me as I reviewed the chart with her. Given my current habits, I practically spend what I earn. Moreover, by the time I am two years into retirement, I would have spent all my savings. Oh man! Talk about a wake up call! I realized that I wasn‚t as secure financially as I thought myself to be.

"Probably sensing the inner panic in me, Tricia then proceeded to calm her down with her kind words, reassuring me that it wasn‚t too late to change all this. At this point, I braced myself for a hard sell. I realized that I had given Tricia an opening that every insurance agent would dream of. But instead of slamming every Sun Life product possible in my direction, she politely asked if I wanted to schedule a future date, in a more private location, for an in-depth consultation on my viable options. I was surprised- dead shocked even!

"Getting over my initial reaction, I realized that throughout our conversation, Tricia, just like the model before her, sounded nothing but sincere. Her repertoire was genuine, just like the message she was trying to get across. I decided to take her seriously and book for a future consultation; after all she had a point- and a good one at that.

"Up to this day I am still touched by the sincere treatment I received, despite my personal bias and pessimism. Moreover, I was surprised by the authentic friendliness that filled the atmosphere as they adjusted to me and not I to them. I can honestly say that I am looking forward to that consultation with Tricia. I have a feeling that she and Sun Life will continue to surprise me with customer care that may possibly exceed my very high expectations. Who knows, if it goes as well, or even better than the booth experience, I may even sign up with for one of their products."

Not so hidden agenda

Speaking of Sun Life, its president and CEO Lorenzo V. Tan has been elected to the board of directors of Smart Communications effective last June 16. Sun Life management‚s support to his new post is very strategic. Having their top man in the Philippines being part of the country‚s leading wireless communications firm puts them in a very advantageous position should there be moves for the companies to do a joint effort. Looks like Sun Life’s really headed for brighter days ahead.

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