Comelec defers opening of bids for new voting machines to June 29

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) special bids and awards committee (SBAC) has deferred the submission and opening of bids for the lease of 23,000 new optical mark readers (OMRs) to June 29 to allow the streamlining of the bidding process for all new voting machines for the 2016 balloting.

In a bulletin, the SBAC announced that the opening of the bids for the P2.5 billion project will be conducted alongside that for the lease project covering 70,977 OMRs on June 29 instead of Tuesday, June 23.

“The bidding for the 23,000 and the 70,977 units of OMR could be pragmatically and conveniently conducted simultaneously to obviate incongruity in procedures and requirements of substantially similar procurement projects,” according to the bulletin.

In view of the change of schedule, other companies interested in participating in the process can still obtain the bidding documents at the Bureau of Treasury Convention Hall at the Comelec’s main headquarters in Intramuros, Manila, an hour before the opening of bids.

The opening of the bids will take place on Monday next week at 10 a.m.

“In faithful observance of the requirement of Republic Act No. 9184, [we are extending] equal opportunity to eligible, qualified and capable private entities to participate in the public bidding,” stated the committee.

So far, six companies has obtained bidding documents for a non-refundable fee of P75,000 for the P2.5 billion project.

These companies were identified as Sysco Paper Corporation, Miru Systems Co., Smartmatic-TIM , Indra Sistemas S.A., Dermalog Identification Systems GmbH and Agan Montenegro Malasaga & Co.

The public bidding for the lease of the 23,000 OMRs next week will already be the second round to be conducted by the Comelec after the first round was declared a failure following the disqualification of Smartmatic-TIM and Spanish firm Indra.

Both technology firms vied for the contract but the BAC disqualified them on Feb. 25 in the last stage of the bidding process.

The 23,000 OMRs will be used in the 2016 presidential elections either to supplement the more than 70,000 units or the 80,000 precinct count optical scan machines if the refurbishment project pushes through.