Talisay VM bares "overpricing"

CEBU - Talisay City Vice Mayor Lani Abarquez yesterday challenged her fellow city officials to stop the anomalous transactions that are plaguing the city.

In a privilege speech delivered before the city council yesterday, Abarquez said that she “cannot imagine” why the city government has “a penchant for preferring to choose the more expensive quotation,” when the Commission on Audit Rules and Regulations dictate procedures on how to save on government expenses.

“There has to be a flaw in the system or it may just be outright corruption that is being perpetrated by a select few or by a sole person, who thinks that these enormously incorrect figures can go unnoticed or passed on as true and correct,” she said.

Abarquez told the council that based on the records provided to her, there are purchases of the city that were overpriced.

One of the glaring examples, she cited, were recent purchases for the Talisay Rescue and Emergency Assistance Team (TREAT).

Based on the acknowledgment receipt dated May 22, and signed by General Services Officer Joan Vebar, the city paid P8,485 for each of the TREAT members’ Tactical berets.

Based on the canvass, the item is only worth P3,600, which means they were overpriced by P4,885.00 each.

Also in the same receipt, the Black Hawk belt was P3,230 against its canvass price which is P1,850 only.

The Tactical Touch duty uniform was also bought for P3,985 when it was supposedly P2,500 only for each set.

Abarquez said there is an overprice of P7,750 for each set or a total of P162,750 for the 21 sets purchased.

“As how I was told, that the persons involved in the overcharging were each given P40,000 as kickbacks,” she alleged.

Abarquez said that this is not the only case of “blatant display of corruption,” as she experienced the same.

A couple of months back, she recalled that she almost approved the purchase of an air conditioning unit worth P37,000, but when she made a verification by doing her own canvass, she found out that the same unit was only worth P25,000.

And when she was acting city mayor a few months ago, she discovered that a voucher for hydraulic oil that is only worth P2,352 per pail was pegged at P12,245.

Even biscuits have not escaped the overpricing scheme, she said. Magic Flakes by pack of 30’s are sold at P60, but is priced P105, while Nescafe 3-in-1 which is supposedly at P142.60 is P255.

“Our gasoline expense has an add-on per receipt, which they call as service charge,” she added.

Rogelio Villaver, chief of civil security unit, has lodged a complaint last December 2 before the office of deputy ombudsman-Visayas Virginia Palanca-Santiago on the alleged overpriced TREAT equipment.

Villaver named as “persons responsible” as Iriza Aquino, Admin Asst. II of the City Social Welfare and Development (one of the canvassers); FO1 Guillermo T. Pegarido (another canvasser), Joan Vebar, chief of the General Services Office; budget officer Edgardo Mabunay, who is also chairman on bids and awards committee (BAC); and city accountant Viluzminda G. Villarante.

Vebar, in a phone interview, said her office was supposed to conduct canvass at other stores for a cheaper cost of items requested, however, a purchase request (PR) from TREAT that arrived her office had already items and prices and the approval of Mabunay.

Mabunay, in a separate interview, denied that there was overpricing in the purchase of TREAT uniforms, saying that all of the items listed were actually recommended by the TREAT members themselves considering that they were also part of the canvassers being the end-users. – Liv G. Campo/NLQ (THE FREEMAN)