The DILG Secretary

Hole of Justice

by Peter G. Jimenea

Sec. Robredo vs. BAC Syndicate

Pres. Noy Aquino is said to ask Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo to explain why he disqualified Kolonwel Trading, the winning bidder in the P243 million contract to supply the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) with fire-fighting equipment.

One of the national dailies wrote that the secretary declared a failure of bidding upon the recommendation of the newly-designated BFP OIC, Fire/Chief Supt. Samuel Perez, an Ilonggo.  The reason probably why the media feasted on the issue. It is believed, however, that a syndicate is covertly working behind the ploy.

As the story goes, Perez’ recommendation and Robredo’s decision are suspicious as the winning bid was reviewed twice by two other bids and awards committees formed by the secretary. The two committees had found the public bidding won by Kolonwel Trading in order.

There is nothing wrong with the public bidding and the contract awarded by BAC to Kolonwel as their claim hinted at. Sad to say, it creates an imputation that Sec. Robredo and OIC Perez are into something bad. The misconception though, endangers integrity to become the last casualty!

I agree that the best way to curb corruption is to do away with the system that fosters it. But unless we have in hand the vital documents to judge them, Sec. Robredo and OIC Perez are still clean. As the saying goes; audi alteram partem – no man shall be condemned unheard.

What really matters in this story is the opposite in my mind, collusion of the suppliers with public officials who have the temerity to pounce on government coffers for every chance they get. Officials who always ask compensation for what they never lost. And I can see these people comfortably sitting in the Bids and Awards Committee or BAC.

A report has reached this writer the income tax return of that winning bidder is only P36,000. If this is true, how did it qualify to the P243M transaction? This is now what Sec. Robredo should look deeper into as a syndicated collusion stinks and this is what we feared most. It seems that BAC has been overrun by thieves!

We are now in the Information Technology (IT) era and moving on to the substantive merits of the issue, my question is - why did the bidder submit a handwritten documents for taxation purposes? Under the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) rules, it should be in Electronic Filing Payment System (EFPS). This is what got us so suspicious about!

The Income Tax Return (ITR) is already a vital document by which Sec. Robredo can easily glean that BAC is now a syndicate he has to deal with. If determined to get rid of crooks in government transactions, he can now start with the BAC and I believe ex uno disce omnes – from one he may learn all.

Beside which, this transaction has took effect still in 2010 and the new OIC-Officer of the BFP was only designated in his post during the last quarter of 2011. Meaning, the supplier has already entered into a lot of transactions with the government without the honest officials getting wind of it.

BAC members should know that it is only for them and their cohorts that what they did was good. They forgot that nobody is indispensable in government service. If the BAC people are comfortable and feeling glued to their seats, the most logical solution for Sec. Robredo to be drawn is - throw those chairs out of the window with them!