1Sambayan launches app to 'protect' Eleksyon 2022 votes

Opposition coalition 1Sambayan on Friday launched a mobile phone application in a bid to protect votes in the May 9 national and local elections.

The HOPE application, or the Honest Open Philippine Elections, is a joint project of Cornerstone Technologies and 1Sambayan.

"The purpose of the HOPE app is to empower every Filipino voter to protect not only his or her vote, but also the vote of all voters in his or her precinct," 1Sambayan convenor, retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, said at a press briefing.

"The voter will not only cast his or her vote, but will also ensure that all the votes cast in his or her precinct are not tampered with by hackers or cheaters," Carpio added.

Carpio said the application, which can immediately be used once installed in smartphones, could determine if the electronic transmission of election results are tampered.

"At the end of voting hours on election day on May 9, 2022, the voter will take a picture of the Election Return at his or her precinct – specifically the election results for the President, the Vice President and the Senators," Carpio said.

"The voter will also take a picture of the System Hash Code found at the bottom of the Election Return. If the System Hash Code does not appear at the bottom of the Election Return, that means the Operating System Code of the Vote Counting Machine has been tampered with," he added.

"Any change in the Operating System Code, even a change in one letter or comma, will disable the System Hash Code and prevent it from appearing in the Election Return. The System Hash Code is the same for all vote counting machines nationwide and has already been made public by the Comelec."

Carpio said the HOPE app could also be a "quick count app" that is faster than any quick count measures in Philippine election history.

"The results of the HOPE app quick count will be available to the public in the HOPE and 1Sambayan websites as the results are tallied," the retired justice said.

He added that 1Sambayan poll watchers would have the results on hand at the canvassing boards, whether at the municipal, city or provincial canvassing boards, to ensure that all Certificates of Canvass issued are free from errors.

"Any tampering of the electronic transmission of the Election Results from the precincts to the local or national servers will easily be discovered and exposed," Carpio said. —KBK, GMA News