Gordon open to defer May 10 polls

Bagumbayan standard bearer Richard Gordon on Wednesday said he is open to the idea of postponing the May 10 elections in order to ensure that the poll machines are functioning properly — as long as the deferment would not go beyond June 30 or the end of the incumbent president's term. "It's up to the Commission on Elections. To avoid chaos, the poll body can choose to postpone elections for a week or until every sector is assured that the machines will work properly," Gordon said in an interview with GMA News' Steve Dailisan.
On Tuesday, lawyer Romulo Macalintal asked the Comelec to defer the polls for about two weeks to thwart possible election failure given the technical problems encountered by some of the Precint Count Optical System (PCOS) machines. Macalintal made the proposal after some PCOS units tested last Monday failed to read test ballots accurately, forcing the Comelec to pull out all the compact flash (CF) cards from their respective voting machines and move quickly to replace the cards with reconfigured ones. Meanwhile, Gordon — the main proponent of the poll automation law — urged Comelec to ensure that it can conduct a clean and orderly elections or else, he said, he would withdraw from the presidential race and run the Comelec himself to ensure the success of the elctions. "Let's make it work. If Comelec can't do it, I will withdraw from the race and run the elections," Gordon said.—JV, GMANews.TV