Here's one less thing to be paranoid about.

The Commission on Elections has announced the completion of the production of Smartmatic-TIM's Precinct Count Optical Scan machines. The 25,000 machines yet to be delivered are scheduled to arrive in the country at least a week before the deadline on February 28.

The 25,000 machines will complete the 82,000 needed for the conduct of automated elections in May. So far, the Comelec has in its custody around 50,000 machines, which are now stored in a warehouse in Cabuyao, Laguna.  Another 8,000 are with the Bureau of Customs while about 800 are in transit.

The Comelec says this should quell some of the concerns about the election preparations.

As soon as all 82,000 machines are here, Smartmatic-TIM will start the customization process. This should be finalized by April.