SSS losing P46M due to bidding problems
Delays in resolving problems over bidding for the construction of a new building for the Social Security System-Cebu branch office have resulted in losses of over P46 million in funds of the agency, a Commission on Audit report said recently.
The COA annual audit report for 2006 stated that the SSS branch in
The project was conceived in 1998 but through the next nine years, the amount of its budget underwent four changes, the last time of which was last year.
When the bidding finally pushed through, the winning contractor was however disqualified, after a post-bid evaluation, prompting the contractor to lodge a protest.
This protest, said the COA, remains unresolved to date while the SSS branch continues to spend millions of money for the rentals of the building it is occupying until now.
“The apparent delay in resolving the procurement issue on hand caused the incurrence of the agency of costs that would have been avoided, such as rental expenses and additional consultancy fees,” COA said.
From the time the building project was proposed in 1998 until this year, the branch still has no building of its own and had spent a total of over P46.29 million in rentals. “The amount of which could be used in investments or other profitable and productive endeavors,” COA said.
COA, in its review and analysis of the building and construction in progress-building account, said that another amount of over P11.7 million was also paid already to the contractors—from 1998 to 2005—for architectural, engineering and interior design services.
In November 2000, two years after the proposal to construct a building for the SSS-Cebu branch was set, a bid was held with seven contractors participating. This was cancelled however because the Department of Budget and Management disapproved the original budget of P520 million.
In 2001, the second attempt for the project bidding was made but since the budget was reduced to P200 million the process had to be cancelled again because the design of the building had to be altered to fit the slashed allocation.
In 2003, the Social Security Commission, the policy-making body of the SSS, issued a resolution reducing further the budget for the project to P89.232 million only. For the third time, however, no bidding took place.
In October 2005, the commission issued another resolution setting the budget at P117.128 million. On this fourth try, bidding took place in March last year with H.S. Oaminal Construction winning over four other participants for having the lowest tender.
The COA report did not state how much was the Oaminal bid but it said that the branch building committee of the SSS decided, in September 2006, to post-disqualify Oaminal Construction citing its poor performance as contractor in the SSS-La Union branch project.
Oaminal protested to the commission that same year but, as what COA reported, this remains unresolved to this day. COA even said that the law requires the commission to resolve any protest within seven days from the time it is filed. — Ferliza C. Contratista/RAE
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