G.R. No. 222731 . March 08, 2016.
BAGUMBAYAN-VNP MOVEMENT, INC., AND RICHARD J. GORDON, AS CHAIRMAN OF BAGUMBAYAN-VNP MOVEMENT, INC., PETITIONERS, VS. COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS, RESPONDENT.

FACTS

Petitioners Bagumbayan-VNP Movement, Inc., a political party, and its Chairman, former Senator Richard J. Gordon, author of Republic Act No. 9369 (the Automated Election System Law), filed a Petition for Mandamus. They sought to compel the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) to implement the Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) security feature for the 2016 National and Local Elections. Petitioners argued that Section 6 of R.A. No. 8436 , as amended, mandates the automated election system to have a “provision for voter verified paper audit trail” and a “system of verification to find out whether or not the machine has registered his choice.” They contended that this legally requires the issuance of a printed receipt reflecting the voter’s choices for verification.
The COMELEC, however, decided not to enable the VVPAT’s printing function for the 2016 elections. It configured the Vote-Counting Machines (VCMs) to display the voter’s choices on a screen for verification but not to print a receipt. The poll body justified this decision based on practical concerns, including the prevention of vote-buying (where receipts could be used as proof of voting for a particular candidate) and the avoidance of longer voting lines and delays.

ISSUE

Whether the COMELEC has a clear, ministerial duty under R.A. No. 9369 to enable the printing of VVPAT receipts, such that it may be compelled by mandamus to do so.

RULING

The Supreme Court DISMISSED the petition. The Court held that mandamus does not lie because the COMELEC’s duty to implement the VVPAT is not a purely ministerial duty compelled by the law. A writ of mandamus issues only to command the performance of a clear, specific, and ministerial duty, leaving no room for discretion.
The legal logic is grounded in statutory construction. While Section 6 of the law lists “provision for voter verified paper audit trail” as a minimum system capability, it does not explicitly and categorically command that a physical paper receipt must be printed and given to the voter in every instance. The law uses the permissive term “provision for,” which indicates a requirement for the system to have the capability or feature, not an absolute mandate for its operational use in every election. The COMELEC, in the exercise of its constitutional and statutory mandate to administer elections, possesses technical expertise and discretion to determine the manner of implementing automated election safeguards. Its decision to utilize the on-screen verification feature instead of the printed receipt, based on legitimate policy considerations like curbing vote-buying and ensuring administrative efficiency, constitutes a valid exercise of this discretionary power. Therefore, its action cannot be controlled by mandamus.