PLO: Nothing wrong in waterproofing deal, Capitol to save P700T

There’s nothing irregular in the bidding for the waterproofing of roofdeck and appurtenances of the New Iloilo Provincial Capitol.

Provincial Legal Officer Atty. Dennis Ventilacion, vice chair of the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), said the provincial government could, in fact, save more than P700,000 in the transaction.

Ventilacion explained, it was the “conscious” decision of the end-user, which is the Provincial Engineering Office, not to limit the bidding to suppliers with Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) special license but also to general contractors in order to attract many bidders.

He added that the suppliers agreed with said decision during the pre-bid conference conducted by the Bids and Awards Committee.

Ventilacion said, of the 11 suppliers that joined the bidding on February 3, 2011 only one had a PCAB special license, Manila-based Romtech Construction Inc., however, it was disqualified because it has no unit cost analysis.

The project has an Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) of P3,714,463.99. Iloilo-based F & T Construction Supply was the lowest bidder with the contract price of P2,968,839.88.

“Opening the bidding to general contractors was proven to be a wise policy because many suppliers participated in the bidding which drove the prices down,” Ventilacion said.

On the issue of lack of experience against winning bidder F&T Construction Supply, Ventilacion stressed that it is qualified under Sec. 23.5.2.5 of the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act 9184 otherwise known as Government Procurement Act.

Besides, he said, the Technical Working Group of the BAC has checked with the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) the previous work of F&T Construction Supply and they gave a positive response.

Ventilacion added that during the committee hearing of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan held recently, it was agreed that F&T Construction Supply shall give a 10-year warranty on its services and that the payment will be made on a staggered basis to ensure that they will render quality service. (ECGarcia/ Capitol News)