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Diokno claims Andaya started practice of early procurement
House Appropriations Committee chairman and Camarines Sur 1st District Rep. Rolando Andaya Jr. was the one who started the practice of bidding government projects even before a budget bill is enacted into law, Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno claimed Wednesday.
“The conduct of early procurement activities, short of award, is not new. It has been allowed since 2009, under the Arroyo administration with Andaya as Budget secretary,” Diokno said in a breakfast forum in Manila.
The Budget chief made the remark after the House leader alleged that favored contractors paid “commissions” or cash advances to get a slice of the P75 billion of infrastructure projects the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) adjusted in the proposed budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
The lawmaker claimed that Diokno inserted P75 billion into the DPWH budget unbeknown to Public Works Secretary Mark Villar.
The Budget chief noted the amount was not an insertion, but an adjustment to meet the infrastructure spending goal of 5 percent of the gross domestic product.
Andaya claimed the contractors who supposedly paid commissions related to the P75 billion of infrastructure projects were upset after the Senate and House of Representatives realigned the money.
“These projects had already been bid out and ready for awarding to the favored contractors once the President signs the 2019 national budget ... Ibig sabihin, kahit pinag-aaralan pa lamang ng Kongreso ang proposed 2019 budget, ipinag-utos na ni Sec. Diokno ang bidding activities para sa mga infrastructure projects at government contracts,” the lawmaker said.
During the forum, Diokno noted that Andaya seems to have appointed himself as spokesperson of the contractors who paid commissions.
The Budget chief also noted that the practice of bidding out projects prior to the enactment the budget actually started with Circular 01-2009 —issued when Andaya was the Budget chief.
Under the circular, agencies can proceed with procurement activities prior to a Notice of Award, using as basis the National Expenditure Program (NEP).
In early procurement, the contract is not yet perfect until the General Appropriations Act is passed, Diokno said.
The early procurement practice was also restated in DBM Circular Letter 2010-09, which allows agencies to proceed with procurement activities without awarding projects until the President approves the budget.
“This was also the practice during Abad’s time. We are just continuing it,” Diokno said, referring to the-President Benigno Aquino III’s Budget Secretary Butch Abad.
On Andaya’s allegations that contractors paid commissions during the early procurement stage, the Cabinet official said that early procurement does not tolerate advance payments or commissions.
“I do not know what the practice was when Andaya was Budget secretary but under our watch, advance payments or commissions are considered illegal,” Diokno said.
“Such practices are not, and will not be, condoned by the Duterte administration. If Andaya know of such practices, and he clearly does, as he has been defending contractors, then he should name these personalities as they should be investigated,” he added.
Reputable contractors do not practice giving cash advances, Diokno noted, saying the DBM is only in charge of crafting and overseeing the budget process.
“Line agencies, not the DBM, are concerned with program and project implementation. DBM is not concerned with contractors nor is the DBM involved in the bidding process and awarding of contracts,” he said.
Early procurement before the budget year was introduced to ensure efficient and timely implementation of projects, Diokno noted.
The DBM even sought to institutionalize early procurement as best practice to meet global standards in government efficiency, as this is the practice in many developed countries, according to the Budget chief.
Diokno urged Andaya to coordinate with the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate allegations of advanced payments in securing government projects. —VDS, GMA News
