Probe sought on PNP purchase of P1.8-B jeeps

A retired police general who is now a House member is seeking a congressional investigation into the acquisition by the Philippine National Police of some 1,800 new patrol jeeps worth P1.8 billion.

ACT-CIS Rep. Samuel Pagdilao, a former director of the PNP’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, has filed a resolution urging the House committee on public order and safety to look into the allegedly rigged bidding for the vehicle purchase.

The inquiry should invite the PNP officials involved in the bidding process as well as the head of Columbian Motors which won the contract, he said.

Pagdilao said Columbian was the only bidder allowed by the PNP bids and awards committee to participate. The committee also did not announce the date of the pre-bid conference, “technically disallowing other interested parties to join the bidding,” he added.

“The bidding for the PNP single cab patrol jeeps obviously favored the Columbian Motors, which supplied the PNP Mahindra Bolero brand,” he said. “It brings back to public mind the corruption-ridden purchase of Raven I helicopters and patrol boats, which has tainted the integrity of the PNP.”

“There is a need to establish a clear-cut policy that will discourage some unscrupulous individuals or group from rigging the bidding and prevent a repeat of similar incidents in the future,” he said.

Sought for comment, PNP spokesperson Chief Supt. Generoso Cerbo Jr. said the PNP was ready to face any investigation into the procurement.

Cerbo clarified, however, that the bidding was conducted by the Department of Budget and Management’s (DBM) Procurement Service and not by the PNP.

“We are open and transparent about this process. We believe in the capacity of the DBM to conduct the bidding,” Cerbo told the Inquirer in a phone interview. “We believe in the fairness and integrity of the DBM.”

He also maintained that the PNP had actually saved P93 million in the purchase of the Indian-made vehicles.

In his resolution calling for the probe, Pagdilao cited “possible irregularities” in the acquisition, particularly on the technical aspects that helped Columbian Motors to qualify.

The PNP acquired the patrol jeeps in two batches: the first consisting of 930 vehicles with a budget of P920 million, and the second made up of 945 units with a budget of P945 million.

ACT-CIS, Pagdilao’s party-list group, stands for Anti-Crime and Terrorism through Community Involvement and Support.

In July last year, Interior Secretary Mar Roxas announced the procurement as part of government efforts to ensure that each of the 144 cities and 1,490 municipalities in the country would have a patrol vehicle.

In that announcement, and contrary to Pagdilao’s claim, Roxas actually announced the date of the pre-bid conference, setting it on July 10 at Camp Crame.