24/7 infra works doable, construction group says

MANILA, Philippines - A non-stop public construction currently in the works could give contractors a hard time, but would not be impossible to pursue, the Construction Industry Association of the Philippines (CIAP) said.

“While we in the construction industry, including the private contractors, may find the 24/7 construction of new infrastructure projects challenging, the same is still a doable task,” the agency said in a statement.

“Your article, however, insinuated the near impossibility of doing the job,” it said.

CIAP issued the statement to The STAR in response to its report last Oct. 24 that discussed public and private capacities to absorb the influx of infrastructure projects next year.

This, as the Department of Budget and Management said it would push for round-the-clock public construction of projects in key cities to fast track their completion.

The story cited CIAP data that showed only 4.12 percent or 321 of 7,778 private contractors under category AAA or those which can build projects worth above P300 million, making most contractors unqualified to bid for billion-peso projects.

The report quoted private officials as saying that joint ventures among smaller contractors are possible, while citing CIAP data on blacklisted entities and the reasons why they were blacklisted.

In response, CIAP clarified that minimum capitalization requirements for AAA contractors is P90 million, not P19 million as stated in the report.

It also said the Philippine Contractors Association Board, which blacklisted two firms for faking financial qualifications, is not a separate entity from CIAP.

CIAP is an attached agency of the Department of Trade and Industry.

“We hope that a correction of these factual errors will be made and that a more accurate and positive report will come out in the future,” CIAP said.