Rio: Dennis Uy’s ties with Duterte admin no bearing in Mislatel selection

MANILA, Philippines – The relationship and contributions of Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy to President Rodrigo Duterte had nothing to do with the selection of Mislatel Consortium as the nation’s third telco player.

This was the assertion of Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Acting Secretary Eliseo Rio Jr. on Thursday after Senator Antonio Trillanes IV claimed Mislatel was given preferential treatment when it was chosen as new major player in the telco industry.

It was revealed during the Senate Committee on Public Services’ hearing that Uy and other officials of Udenna Corp., which is part of Mislatel Consortium, contributed to Duterte’s 2016 presidential bid. Uy, in the same hearing, also admitted to having close ties with Duterte and some Cabinet members.

READ: Dennis Uy admits close ties with Duterte, Cabinet members

Rio, however, said Mislatel was chosen because it was the only bidder that complied with bidding requirements.

“Kahit ano ang nagawa ni Dennis Uy, ng Mislatel, they were never considered in their selection,” Rio told reporters in an interview.

“‘Yung aming procedure, we did not see kung sino ‘yung pinaka-malapit, we just went by documents. Mislatel ang kumpleto,” he added.

The DICT acting chief insisted the selection process for the third telco was the “most open, transparent,” and those that were disqualified in the bidding lacked the required documents.

“Nakita niyo naman, it was the most open, transparent selection process,” Rio said. “At yung na-disqualify is because may dokumento sila, which they agreed when they joined the contest, they agreed to give these documents but noong binuksan yung kanilang bid, wala. Mislatel ang qualified.” /kga

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