Express mode: Bill seeking to streamline gov’t procurement filed

A lawmaker has filed a bill introducing “express mode” and “electronic shopping” as alternative methods of government procurement in a bid to cut bidding time in half.

Quirino Rep. Dakila “Dax” Cua has filed House Bill No. 8539 which seeks to amend Republic Act No. 9184 or the “Government Procurement Reform Act.”

“A big portion of government procurement is repeated every year. We want to make it easier for government to procure goods and services that it has previously acquired and has knowledge of,” Cua said in a statement on Monday.

“That way, (the) government can spend less time on bureaucratic processes and more time in providing services to the people,” he added.

The lawmaker explained that the express mode would allow the government to “directly procure from a winning bidder that previously won through competitive bidding.”

To ensure that the government continues to get the best bid, Cua said there would be a “challenge period” for other interested parties to make better offers.

Meanwhile, electronic shopping utilizes technology to solicit price quotations from rated products. Cua said the quotations for rated products would be the basis of government in selecting the best offer.

Under the online platform, a rating system for goods procured by the government will also be established. Cua said this would create a “standardized” and “transparent database that will prevent one agency from repeating due diligence that has already been done previously.”

“Our procurement law places a heavy burden on procuring entities to do their research and craft specifications accurately,” Cua pointed out.

“At present, the different government entities work in silos. This leads to work being repeated across different entities,” he added. /ee