CHOICE OF RAFANAN TO BIDDING PANEL
ON POLL AUTOMATION LAUDED

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Q. Pimentel, Jr. (PDP-Laban) today lauded the choice of Atty. Fernando T. Rafanan as chairman of the Special Bids and Awards Committee (SBAC) of the Commission on Elections that will conduct the public bidding for the Pll.3 billion poll automation project.

Pimentel said Rafanan, director of the Comelec law department, is best suited for the important task because of his reputation for independence, for doing what he believes is right and his adherence to the rule of law,

"Rafanan is an excellent choice as head of the Comelec's Special Bids and Awards Committee. I think he will do a great job at it. Our people should support his efforts to get the best deal to automate the 2010 elections," he said.

Pimentel said Rafanan as a career official of the Comelec has set the example as a civil servant who would not betray his principles and or circumvent the law even at the risk of displeasing the powers-that-be.

He said a person of his caliber and character is needed to ensure smooth implementation of the automation project and to dispel public apprehension that the failure of a similar past project might be repeated to the detriment of the efforts to clean up the electoral process.

The Comelec has announced that public bidding for the election automated project will be held at the agency' session hall in Intramuros, Manila on April 27, at 10 a.m.

To be bidded out are the procurement of electronic voting machines, including the supply of ballot paper, electronic transmission services using public telecommunication networks, training, technical support, warehousing, deployment, installation, pullout, system integration and overall project management to be used in the automation of the counting, transmission and canvassing of votes.