Losing Makati bidder claims being trapped inside city hall elevator
MANILA, Philippines — A firefighting and rescue equipment supplier on Thursday confirmed a Senate testimony that he was trapped inside an elevator of the Makati City hall while on his way to submit bid documents.
Marcial Lichauco, president of 911 Alarm, Inc., said the elevator incident revealed by Mario Hechanova, a former Makati procurement official, happened to him on May 15, 2007.
In one of the Senate hearings into the allegedly overpriced Makati City Hall II parking building, Hechanova claimed that public biddings in Makati City are rigged to favor certain companies.
Hechanova said a rival of a favored bidder was detained in an elevator for 20 minutes, causing its delay in submitting bid requirements. He did not identify any company, but Lichauco felt alluded to.
"From the testimony, it sounded very similar to an incident that happened to us at Makati City hall," Lichauco said at the televised probe, adding that they were trapped in the elevator for about an hour and not 20 minutes.
Lichauco narrated that they arrived at the city hall at 12:53 p.m. for the bidding set at 2 p.m. Only two of the six elevators were working since the four were then under maintenance.
He said they were going to the bidding room on the ninth floor when the elevator got stuck somewhere close to the seventh floor.
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"After being trapped for a while, breathing became very difficult," Lichauco said.
Lichauco recalled that they only got out of the elevator around 1:55 p.m.
They were late for the bidding since they only arrived at the bidding room at 2:02 p.m.
On May 17, 2007, Lichauco said they filed a motion for reconsideration and a motion questioning the eligibility of the winning bidder, the Alexandrite Blue Corp.
Makati officials present at the Senate hearing, however, denied intentionally trapping Lichauco inside the elevator.
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