Science Body Plays Critical Role in the 2025 Elections 

The Department of Science and Technology, one of the Commission on Elections’ (COMELEC) partners, together with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), in the recently held national and local elections (NLE), has been playing a critical role in Philippine elections for the past ten years. 

Banking on the objective accuracy of science, and backed by the latest in technology, the country’s premier science body had been visible at all stages of the electoral process to ensure a secure and transparent election process. 

Like in previous elections, the DOST worked with the COMELEC for the Certification of Electoral Board Members. Science Secretary Dr. Renato U, Solidum, Jr. further clarified that DOST’s role went beyond the certification of Electoral Board members. 

“DOST’s involvement in the 2025 NLE did not end with local and overseas EB certification. As a non-voting special member of the COMELEC Advisory Council (CAC), we also provide technical advisory services and submit position papers to further enhance the electoral process,” said Secretary Solidum. 

For the recently concluded polls, DOST assigned personnel from its Regional Offices as technical staff in the COMELEC’s Technical Hubs across the country.    

For the 2025 NLE, COMELEC established 110 Technical Hubs nationwide with at least one hub per province, to support the election process. These hubs had been operating since the first week of May during the Final Testing and Sealing (FTS) of Automated Counting Machines (ACMs), and until Election Day. A total of 203 DOST personnel from its Regional Offices manned 108 of these Technical Hubs.    

DOST personnel who were assigned to the Technical Hubs addressed various poll-related issues that were encountered by Electoral Board (EB) members during the Final Testing and Sealing (FTS) period, and through Election Day. This included addressing technical issues, reconfiguring USB drives and smart cards, and conducting system reconfiguration for the ACMs. 

“Science and technology played a vital role in the success of the 2025 Elections. DOST deployed its personnel to support the Technical Hubs across the country, fulfilling our mandate to ensure that technological innovations, whether simple or advanced, are directed toward serving the Filipino people, specifically this time for ensuring a secure, transparent, and efficient electoral process,” Secretary Solidum said. 

It has been observed that the deployment of new assets during the recent elections contributed to a more streamlined and efficient technical support operation. For the 2025 polls, the Technical Hubs saw improved reliability and performance of the updated systems, which minimized the need for extensive troubleshooting and allowed for a smoother overall electoral process.   

But what the public does not know is that science and technology played an important role in even the choice of papers that were used for the elections. 

The COMELEC had tapped DOST’s Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI), through its Pulp and Paper Testing Laboratory (FPPTL), to test, certify, and guarantee the quality of papers for the May 12 elections. The FPPTL is the sole certifying body accredited by the COMELEC for this task.  

DOST Secretary Solidum paid tribute to DOST-FPRDI’s advanced testing services, saying that “By ensuring that election materials meet quality standards, we contribute to a smooth and reliable voting process. High-quality paper ensures ballots are durable and easily readable, which minimizes the occurrence of errors.”  

COMELEC Chairperson George Erwin Garcia also lauded the agency’s role in evaluating election technologies. “Ang DOST ang nagsagawa ng iba’t ibang pagsusuri sa ating mga makina—mula sa stress test, electrical test, at iba pa—upang matiyak na maayos at maaasahan ang ating mga gamit,” he said, adding that even the ballot boxes underwent waterproofing tests under DOST’s supervision. He emphasized that the DOST’s assessments were consistent with those of international certifiers, proving the institution’s technical credibility. 

“Ibig sabihin, ang ating sariling institusyon ay may kakayahang magsagawa ng parehong antas ng sertipikasyon. Kaya’t naniniwala kaming maaari nating isulong ang pagbabago sa batas upang kilalanin ang DOST bilang pangunahing certifying body sa bansa,” he noted. 

DOST is committed to extend its help and expertise for the succeeding national and local polls, upholding quality public service delivery through science and technology, most importantly during crucial times like electing the next batch of officials who will lead and shape the future of our nation.

By: Ron Arjay Lobhoy, ITKMU