ELECTION 2010: Poll-machine test transmission FAIL!

Transmission FAIL!

With less than a month to go before the dreaded-slash-much-anticipated 2010 presidential elections, the new automated system is still encountering glitches. Not that we're surprised because it's happened before, but this time, the problem is caused by (cue robotic voice) HUMAN ERROR!

Transmission tests in the northern municipality of Ivana, Batanes, uncovered what many have already been thinking as the weakest link in the automation chain – lack of knowledge about the system. Nope, we're not talking about the voters (the SexBomb Girls already had that covered months ago) but about the people who are tasked to run the equipment.

First-time tester Geoffrey Nanud (or Na-"noob"?) was tasked to configure and demo the Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) that will transmit election results from the municipal hall to Smartmatic's servers in Manila.

The demo, however, turned out to be an embarrassing experience for Nanub as he took more than 3 hours to establish a satellite uplink in the wide open spaces of Batanes. Ivana election officer Rosanna Lagua expressed her concern especially since the transmission of votes is just as important as the voting itself.

In a classic case of the media becoming part of the news, an ABS-CBN satellite specialist stepped in to help Nanub configure the equipment. The specialist effortlessly fixed the problem. Ouch.

We feel bad for noob because, obviously, it's not his fault he wasn't trained properly. Too late for him, though, as he's already been OWNED on national TV.