Firm in Andaya expose bagged P4.24B worth of gov’t contracts in 2017 —PhilGEPS

Bulacan-based C.T. Leoncio Construction and Trading bagged almost P13 billion worth of government contracts since 2011, data obtained by GMA News Research show.

Data from the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) also show that the contractor was able to corner P4.24 billion worth of contracts last year, its biggest haul in the last eight years.

But contractor Consolacion T. Leoncio denied accusations hurled by House Majority Leader Rolando Andaya Jr. that she was able to get contracts because of her supposed ties with allies of President Rodrigo Duterte.

The contractor was summoned by the House Committee on Rules, which is investigating the effects of the cash-based budgeting system.

Based on data uploaded to the PhilGEPS website on December 11, 2018, GMA News Research counted 333 government contracts awarded to CT Leoncio from April 2011 to April 2018. The contracts have a total worth of P12.94 billion.

275 of these contracts, with a total worth of P9.24 billion, were entered into by the government with CT Leoncio alone. The remaining 58, worth a total of P3.7 billion, were projects of CT Leoncio in joint venture with other contractors.

Mostly DPWH

Almost all the 333 CT Leoncio government contracts went through public bidding, data from PhilGEPS show. These were civil works projects such as buildings, repairs and/or maintenance of roads, bridges, ports, school buildings and classrooms, flood control systems, among others.

Three hundred twelve of these contracts, worth a total of P12.35 billion, were implemented by the different regional, provincial, and district offices of the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Seven contracts worth P238.99 million were carried out by the then-Department of Transportation and Communications, while another seven contracts worth P139.41 million were under the Philippine Ports Authority.

CT Leoncio also had contracts with the Legazpi City Water District, the AFP Procurement Service, the Occidental Mindoro State College, the Philippine Reclamation Authority, and local government units like the provinces of Iloilo and Occidental Mindoro, and Pasig City.

From Ilocos Norte to Tawi-Tawi

PhilGEPS data show that CT Leoncio had government projects in Metro Manila and at least 35 provinces. It also had DPWH regional projects in the Bicol, Ilocos and Central Luzon regions.

Most of its contracts were for its home province of Bulacan. From 2011 to 2018, CT Leoncio had a total of 64 contracts for civil works in Bulacan worth a total of P1.45 billion.

CT Leoncio also had 59 contracts for projects in Bulacan’s neighbor Metro Manila, amounting to almost P2 billion. This is the biggest amount of CT Leoncio contracts in an area for the period.

Its biggest project in Metro Manila was the construction of a four-story, 32-room classroom school building in Tondo. CT Leoncio was awarded the P94.8 million contract for that DPWH project in 2017 after placing the "lowest calculated responsive" bid, PhilGEPS data show.

CT Leoncio also had contracts in Laguna, Sorsogon, Ilocos Norte, Palawan, Cavite, Iloilo, Davao Del Sur, Rizal, Camarines Sur, Isabela, Batangas, Davao Del Norte, Misamis Oriental, Romblon, Quezon, Pangasinan, Antique, Cagayan, Tawi-Tawi, Catanduanes, Zambales, Camarines Norte, Ifugao, La Union, Masbate, Zamboanga Del Sur, Albay, Agusan Del Sur, Zamboanga Del Norte, Occidental Mindoro, Apayao, Marinduque, Cebu, and Ilocos Sur.

7,800-percent increase

Based on PhilGEPS data, the cost of government contracts awarded to CT Leoncio soared by 7,800 percent in six years, from 2012 to 2017.

The cost and number of its contracts had been steadily increasing every year from 2012 to 2017. The contractor only had four government contracts worth P53.63 million in 2012. After two years, in 2014, the number of contracts shot up to 34, their cost breaching the billion-peso mark.

By 2017, its projects cost a total of P4.24 billion, its biggest haul so far.

Its 96 projects last year include two of their biggest contracts yet: Package 1 and Package 2 for the construction of Davao City Coastal Bypass Road. Each contract cost P224 million and is implemented by DPWH Region 11. CT Leoncio was in a joint venture with Rely Construction & Supply for these projects.

Nothing to hide

Andaya believes that Leoncio was able to bag billions of pesos in government contracts because of her supposed ties with current Cabinet members of Duterte. He also noted that the contractor has failed to complete its projects on time.

But in a telephone interview with GMA News’ Ivan Mayrina, Leoncio denied having any connection with any government official. She said all her projects underwent the bidding process and complied with all the guidelines and requirements.

“Wala naman akong dapat na itago. Lahat naman 'yan dumaan sa tamang proseso,” Leoncio said.

A search at the Business Name Registration System of the Department of Trade and Industry confirmed that C.T. Leoncio Construction and Trading is registered with the agency. PhilGEPS data show that the business is based in Sta. Maria, Bulacan with Leoncio as its general manager.

Leoncio took offense at Andaya’s pronouncement that CT Leoncio, being a single proprietorship business, is like a “sari-sari store”. Andaya, in a privileged speech on December 10, said CT Leoncio may have close ties with the Duterte cabinet because a single proprietor based in Bulacan could not have cornered billions of pesos in government projects all over the country.

“Ang opisina ko, kumpleto,” Leoncio said. “Sarili ko 'yang office. Hindi ako nagrerenta, akin 'yan. Pa'no naman niya ko masasabing sari-sari store? Nakakasakit naman ng damdamin 'yun,” she said.

When asked how much her government contracts cost, Leoncio said she has secured around P3 billion worth of projects all over the country for the years 2017 and 2018. She said Andaya should not single out Sorsogon because she also had projects in the congressman’s province of Camarines Sur. She said she also did repairs on Otis Bridge in Manila.

Asked to clarify the PhilGEPS data on her government contracts, Leoncio told GMA News Research in a text message that she was advised by her lawyer not to grant interviews to the media anymore.

A list on the DPWH website also confirmed that C.T. Leoncio is licensed under Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB). A PCAB license is a requirement for any contractors, including sub-contractors and specialty contractors, before engaging in the business of contracting.

COA finding

A Commission on Audit report had flagged a project by CT Leoncio for lack of proper documentation.

In its 2017 annual audit report on the municipality of Luisiana, Laguna, COA said the payments made to the joint ventures of CT Leoncio and ILG Enterprises for the Level II Potable Water Supply Subproject had incomplete documents and lacked details/information on some of the documents submitted.

COA said the Bids and Awards Committee resolution recommending the awarding of the contract to the joint venture was dated January 13, 2016, which was almost a month before Post Qualification Evaluation Report dated February 4, 2016.

COA also pointed out that the contract agreement between the municipality and the joint venture was incomplete since there were no terms and conditions, including the date it was notarized.  with a report from Agatha Guidaben/NB, GMA News