IT has taken a surprisingly long time for the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) not to reflect on the causes of the problems that resulted in the injudicious spending of the people’s money in implementing the Automated Election System (AES). One thing for sure, it’s not the same as what happens in the automation projects of most private companies and some government agencies. The CEOs, especially in the banking sector, would make sure that the investment placed in their computerized information systems and technologies (CIST) would not only yield streamlined business processes to satisfy their depositors but more so on the quick return on investment. As much as possible, the CEOs would also ensure that they stretch their CIST more than its useful life. With the COMELEC, as observed by AES Watch, the use of PCOS machines for one day only generated not only controversies for non-compliance with AES law but also mishandling of multi-billion-peso contracts.