No irregularities in P2.8-B Asean hosting deal bidding–Diokno

Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno provides updates on the 2017 budget of President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration during a press briefing at Malacañang on Jan. 3. TOTO LOZANO/Presidential Photo

Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno on Tuesday said there were no irregularities in the bidding for the P2.8-billion Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) hosting contract this 2017.

Diokno was reacting to a Vera Files report that said the government violated the procurement law after it granted the management contract to sole bidder Stagecraft International, which offered P1 billion during the bidding on Dec. 1.

“Only one submitted a bid, this is the same bidder who won the right to provide the service in the 2015 Apec,” the budget chief told reporters in a Palace briefing, referring to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit held in the Philippines.

In a statement, the Department of Budget and Management said Stagecraft International and Events Organizer Network Inc. (EON) attended the pre-bid conference on Nov. 15 but only Stagecraft submitted a bid on Dec. 1.

This made EON “technically not a bidder for this contract,” DBM said.

Diokno said the government had allotted P2.8 billion for the hosting contract but Stagecraft International offered only P1 billion.

“If there is only one qualifying bid, that’s valid. That’s not a failure,” he said.

EON had filed a motion for reconsideration, which the procurement service had resolved.

“Now, EON did not even submit a bid. So I’m surprised that (it’s) now complaining and (it) cannot really comply, because the kind of services that (it) is providing is very limited,” Diokno said.

He said the contract was a combination of technical services and goods.

“Actually, it’s a combination of goods plus technical. The point of EON, which is a smaller company, is to break down (the expenses) into five so it can qualify on the technical aspect, since it’s just like a party provider,” the secretary said.

“But the one who didn’t like it was Ambassador Paynor because he doesn’t want to talk to five people,” he said, referring to Philippine Ambassador to the United States Marciano Paynor. “There should be only one. Because if you break up the contract into five small projects, EON may qualify on one of the five.”

The budget chief pointed out that the government was “running out of time” for the preparations.

“We’re running out of time already. It’s now, it’s happening now … there’s really a sense of urgency,” he said.