Corruption via selective procurement?

You would think that after President Duterte made a big deal about corruption inside PhilHealth, that people would have second thoughts about engaging in any form of graft or corruption, particularly anything that has to do with Department of Health (DOH) supplies and the like. But it looks like a bunch of political appointees allegedly from down south think they are smarter than others and they can slip quick deals in between without being noticed. I just received a tip to sniff around or ask contacts at the Department of Budget Management (DBM) about how a small group could possibly be implementing “selective procurement” or buying supplies from favored companies that supply imported medical related materials ranging from gloves, face masks or complete sets of PPEs while leaving local aspirants/ manufacturers hanging in the air, or in the dark.

This has apparently embarrassed officials at the Department of Trade and Industry who had gone out of their way to encourage local businessmen to shift or retool their operations in order to produce locally made medical supplies. The deal was for Filipino companies to get into the business and in turn they would get the lion’s share of orders for masks, gloves and PPEs from the government. Those who were patriotic enough had no second thoughts to do it for government and the country and invested large sums. But somewhere along the way, the DTI allegedly got sidelined in the decision making, while the procurement and negotiations ended up being handled by an office inside DBM. Ever since that happened, the project to produce locally made medical supplies has entered into a perilous state due to the absence of formal agreements or contracts. Efforts to get clarification or to finalize procurement contracts have time and again been postponed, leaving businessmen wondering. One company who reportedly got an actual contract to supply was allegedly advised not to deliver goods at the moment.

On the outside, the idea that the DBM is helping the DOH concerning procurements seem sensible since the DOH is swamped with so much responsibilities and controversies. But the history of government in the Philippines is such that when large sums and big budgets are allocated to projects, the minute a special office is set up, or a policy is sent out that only the office of such and such is in charge, more often than not, we eventually unearth a scheme designed to gain access to and manipulate procurement and funds. Just review all the controversy that took place at the DOTC in the past administration. To this day, the issues of graft have not been settled regarding the unfunded procurement of license plates, etc.

To be fair to people at the DBM handling the procurement, it may be that after the PhilHealth controversy on Interim Reimbursements, they are now simply being extra careful to make sure that any and all agreements and contracts they enter into are legally correct. But on the other hand, given the doubts and suspicion of corruption in the midst of the pandemic, it does not help if government officials or political appointees are silent, not transparent and inexplicably delay decisions. There has to be predictability in the course of doing business, contracts and commitments as well as verbal assurances must be respected and honored. It is also sad to think that after initiating the project, the DTI was left out of the loop. There may be no wrongdoing but in the same breath, those who have much to lose are justified to suspect that “selective procurement” could be in the works. That by itself is already graft, and to profit from it would certainly be corruption.

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Sen. Ralph Recto calls it “Trojan Horse” but I call it homing devices that will insure our annihilation in the event of a nuclear war between China and the US. What I’m referring to are the cell sites that telecoms company Dito wants and has been given permission to construct inside Philippine military camps all over the country. Most people opposed to the idea of those cell sites inside military camps are against the idea because of concerns over espionage or spying. But in my conversation with Congressman Rufus Rodriguez, I pointed out two scary possibilities. First, as I said, is that those cell sites or towers partly owned by China can be homing devices for missiles or attack aircraft. The other concern is that those cell sites would be strategically located to block communications within the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the event of an armed conflict in the region or inside Philippine territory.

As I continued to inquire about the AFP-Dito deal, I asked Congressman Rodriguez how much the AFP was getting by way of compensation. Cong. Rodriguez said he was of the impression that the AFP was not getting rental or any other form of compensation. That is absolutely the worst of the worse. It may leave a bad taste in the mouth to compromise our national security and get paid for it, but getting absolutely nothing is like giving away our national security for free.

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Not too long ago DPWH Secretary Mark Villar proudly announced the opening of a bike lane alongside the C6 highway. As expected, bicycle enthusiasts as well as commuters who travel on bicycles were happy with the added feature on the C6. But a few months later, some people have called my attention regarding the transformation of the bike lane into an obstacle course of sorts because the bike lane is now being used for parking for trucks, tricycles and vendors. In addition, one biker claims that some portions have either been left unfinished or already needs repair.

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