Observers have said that violence flared prior to Monday's national election in the Philippines, as officials considered delaying it because of voting system problems.

The New York Times has reported that an explosion in a southern village killed one person and injured three, and five other persons died in election-related incidents in two other provinces.

The newspaper further reported that the country's Commission on Elections said it would put nine areas of the country under its direct control.

Days earlier, officials had said they might delay the election after a software flaw was discovered in a new voting system. Authorities rushed to replace memory cards in almost 76,000 electronic voting machines throughout the country.

The Times reported that leading in pre-election polls for the presidency is Sen. Benigno S. Aquino III, the son of the Philippines' two democracy icons Benigno S. Aquino Jr. and Corazon C. Aquino.

It was also noted by the report that in Monday's election 18,000 local, regional and national positions will also be decided. (With Inputs from Agencies)