Stradcom replies

We write on behalf of our client, STRADCOM Corporation, to refute the statements made by an unidentified author of an Open Letter to Stradcom which you published in the Nov. 22, 2023 issue of The Philippine STAR.

The Open Letter wrongly alleges that Stradcom is attempting to make a comeback in the LTO. Nothing could be further from the truth because Stradcom entered into a contractual obligation with the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Land Transportation Office (LTO) in order to enable these two government agencies to conduct the bidding procedures for the procurement of a new LTO IT project. Necessarily, pending its complete installation with the LTO and in order not to impair the delivery of basic services to the public, Stradcom would continue to operate and maintain, in the meantime, the existing LTO IT System it delivered to the LTO.

In fact, the existing LTO IT System is even better than the Land Transportation Management System (LTMS) as delivered by the Dermalog Joint Venture because the LTO IT System as acquired by the government under a Build-Operate-Own (BOO) arrangement at zero cost to the government, unlike the LTMS which was acquired using the direct mode of procurement wherein the government had to appropriate funds therefor.

Under a BOO arrangement, there is strongest impetus to make sure that the LTO IT System is always running efficiently since any downtime or slowdown in the LTO IT System would translate directly to a negative impact on Stradcom’s revenue. By contrast, under a direct mode of procurement such as the LTMS, beyond the maintenance period and warranty period, there would be less pressure for the IT contractor to ensure that the LTMS would be running perfectly since the IT contractor is paid a very substantial portion of the purchase price early on.

Moreover, the Information Technology Audit Office of the Commission on Audit observed in its Technical Evaluation and inspection Report dated Sept. 13, 2023 (Report) that the LTMS, as delivered, failed to comply with the requirements and specifications of the DOTr as spelled out in the bidding documents for the procurement of the LTMS. The hardware delivered failed to meet the specifications and there was an inadequate number of kiosks delivered to strategic sites outside the LTO. Worse, according to the report, there were hardware items delivered but were unserviceable.

In fact, in the Aug. 11, 2022 issue of philstar.com, an article entitled “LTO notes concerns over slow IT processes, sets second dialogue with provider” was published online and it reported on complaints regarding slow process or registration and renewal of driver’s licenses. Such article raises doubts on the Open Letter’s claim that the LTMS is a better IT system than the one developed and installed by Stradcom for the LTO.

In the spirit of fair play, we trust that you will also publish this response in The Philippine STAR at the soonest possible time. Stradcom is concerned that the Open Letter may have tarnished its reputation as a professional provider of computerization and automation service to the government.

Finally, we demand that you identify particular individual(s) who authored and paid for the Open Letter and who are hiding behind the nom de plume “Coalition for Good Governance” so that we may undertake the appropriate legal action against said individual(s). — atty. Dante A. Desierto, Atty Romulo B. Alarkon, desierto & desierto law firm