When there is smoke, there is fire, and so the old saying goes

The Department of National Defense and the Government Procurement Policy Board should investigate possible irregularities or mishandling by the DND Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) in the recent failed bidding and subsequent rebidding of the P5.3  billion Medium Lift Fixed Wing Aircraft Acquisition Project.

The project involves the acquisition of three brand new Medium Lift Fixed Wing Aircraft and its initial Integrated Logistics Support package. The aircraft should be able to operate in any environment and will provide organic general support for territorial defense, internal peace and security plan, internal security operations, disaster response and national development.

Three bidders attended the pre-bid conference last October. These firms are Alenia Aermacchi, EADS Casa Air Bus Military and PT Dikrgantara Indonesia/Indonesian Aerospace (IAe/Persero).

The first bidding was set on Nov. 11, 2013 and only two bidders came, EADS Casa Air Bus (which did not submit a bid) and Alenia Aermacchi (which submitted a sealed bid).

According to insiders, the bidding had been suspicious from the start - in fact the BAC waited half an hour after the scheduled closing time before declaring the bid closed while waiting for other bidders to come in.

DND BAC declared the Nov. 11 bidding a failure after realizing that the agency failed to comply with a legal requirement of publishing the supplemental bid bulletin seven days prior to the bid opening. DND published the supplemental bid bulletin at the PhilGEPS website on November 5, or only six days prior to the bid opening.

The BAC then ordered the immediate publication of another supplemental bid bulletin and opening of bids on Nov. 18, 2 p.m.

Alenia is questioning how the BAC can close the bidding, then reopen it, call it a failed bid, and then reset the bidding just like that.

It is clear from what has transpired that the BAC had been lax in its procedure for bidding out projects involving crucial military equipment. But some cannot help but observe whether the BAC may be relaxing its rule to favor a certain bidder.

In addition, a recent complaint-letter from Alenia addressed to the DND and the Government Procurement Policy Board cited two major instances regarding the “mishandling of the bidding  procedure by the DND-SBAC1” which unfairly imperils them and other legitimate bidders.

Firstly, Alenia (and other bidders) were not called to attend another pre-bidding conference held Dec. 2, 2013.

Secondly, another supplemental bid dated Dec. 6 for a December 16 bidding was never posted on the PhilGeps nor in the official website of the DND, as required by applicable Bidding Rules and Procedures. Moreover, no communication about said issuance has been sent to Alenia.

Having received the supplemental bid only by coincidence, added to the impossibility of attending the December 2 pre-bid conference, Alenia claims it has been denied the right to submit a comprehensive proposal.

Alenia is asking the DND “to suspend the bidding procedure until an investigation on the issue has been done to verify whether or not the DND-SBAC1 followed the right procedure for the issuance of the new bid and the relevant pre-bidding conference so as to remove any doubts and suspicions which might technically arise, about some potential interference by external factors.”

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