DOTC awaits approval to hire maintenance provider

The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) cannot push through with an emergency procurement of the maintenance service provider for the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) 3 without getting the green light from the Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB).

While the government is convinced of the urgent need to get a new maintenance contractor for the MRT 3, the DOTC still has to convince the GPPB on the basis of the proposed emergency procurement.

“There is a need to procure a maintenance provider to replace the monthto-month contractor. We need to go up to the GPPB and justify why we need to pursue emergency procurement as an alternative mode after the second failed bidding,” DOTC Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said.

Abaya earlier argued that it would take at least 1.5 months to award a new maintenance contract through an emergency procurement. This is faster compared with a regular bidding that can last up to three months or a negotiated procurement that could take up to nine weeks.

To recall, the DOTC has indefinitely extended the contract of MRT 3’s existing maintenance contractor, the joint venture of Autre Porte Technique (APT) and Global, Inc. (APT Global), due to the failed bidding of the three-year maintenance contract.

Despite an increase to R2.4 billion from R2.2 billion on the approved budget cost (ABC) for the contract and lesser stringent penalties for failure to meet key performance indices, the second bidding of the MRT 3 maintenance contract failed to draw interested bidders.

As a result of the failed bidding, APT Global remains as the MRT 3 maintenance contractor and it is being paid R57 million for every month of its extended services.

It is unclear, how much the new maintenance contractor will be paid under the emergency procurement as Abaya said “we are still finishing up the terms of reference and the approved budget cost.”

Abaya, along with other DOTC officials, was already sued before the Office of the Ombudsman on alleged anomaly in the procurement of MRT 3 maintenance service provider in 2012.

The criminal complaint stemmed from the DoTC’s decision in October 2012 to award a negotiated maintenance contract to PH Trams - CB&T joint venture for a monthly service fee amounting to $1.15 million. Complainant Field Investigation Office ( FIO) claimed that there was no emergency situation that could justify the negotiated procurement. However, Abaya argued that emergency procurement was made to ensure the continuous operation of the MRT 3 and the safety of its passengers.

Justifying the DOTC’s decision, Abaya said three companies with sufficient track record in providing rail project maintenance services took part in the simplified bid, namely: Sumitomo, CB&T in joint venture with PH Trams, and Miescor Rail. It was only after CB&T was awarded the contract based on its superior bid, that it formalized its JV with PH Trams. (KB)