Stradcom asks LTO to release P4-B payment

MANILA, Philippines - Information technology provider Stradcom Corp. has questioned the refusal of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to release the P4 billion representing the payment for the company’s services on the issuance of drivers’ license.

Eric Pilapil, legal counsel of Stradcom, said in a press statement that the payment should have been released after the Supreme Court issued a ruling resolving the intra-corporate dispute in the IT company.

“How come the LTO still refuses to pay Stradcom for the services for which the government earned billions when the Supreme Court has already spoken on the issue of who is the rightful owner of Stradcom,” he wondered.

Pilapil said the high tribunal already ruled on G.R. No. 204754 last March 18 upholding the findings of the Court of Appeals that concerned the intra-corporate dispute before the Regional Trial Court whereby it was ruled that the Sumbilla Group are nuisance parties and that the Quiambao Group are effectively the lawful and duly elected directors, officers as well as stockholders of Stradcom.

“The Supreme Court had already settled the intra-corporate dispute in the company and there is now no dispute as to who should receive the payment,” the lawyer stressed.

He expressed surprise the LTO continues to withhold the payment as he deplored the continued stonewalling on the payment and the reported assertions on the supposed tax liabilities of Stradcom.

He also lamented that the LTO is making the income tax issue as an excuse not to release the payment to Stradcom.

“It is the company’s respectful and considered position that the P1 billion payment made to the company last January was not enough to trigger the income tax due for the subject calendar year,” he said.

Pilapil said Stradcom should receive P2.2 billion in payment from out of the escrow funds under the control of the LTO in order to pay the alleged tax deficiency of P317 million.

He also said that the matter of the payment of income taxes “was or is sufficiently disclosed to the superiors of Torres and /or concerned approving authorities.”

Pilapil pointed out that the company has already made an assurance to the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) that all its tax obligations with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) would be settled once all the payments are released.

“The company has assured the DOTC however that once all its outstanding computer fees are duly and fully paid, it shall correspondingly and promptly pay the income taxes due thereon to the BIR,” Pilapil added.

The DOTC has decided to rebid LTO’s P8.2 billion road information technology infrastructure project for the second time after the financial proposals submitted by the three bidders – Digitext Asia Corp., Fritz and Macziol Asia, and Eurolink Network - failed to meet the requirement.

Last Nov. 26, the DOTC conducted the bidding for the multi-billion peso project after five out of the nine companies that purchased bid documents participated in the open and transparent procurement process.

Digitext Asia submitted the lowest bid of P3.8 billion followed by Fritz and Macziol Asia with P5.3 billion, and Eurolink Network with P5.8 billion.The bids submitted by Kaisa Consulting and Ceragon Network were not opened because of lack of technical requirements.

The DOTC had set the bidding process for the new LTO-IT system in time for the Feb. 10 expiration of the contract of Stradcom but the bidding for a new P8.2-billion LTO-IT system was delayed by several months when a Quezon City court issued a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO).

The DOTC was only able to proceed with the bidding after the Court of Appeals favored the argument of the DOTC setting aside the TRO issued by the lower court.