City Council flags delays, irregularities in MRB project

CEBU, Philippines —  The Cebu City Council has raised concerns over the delayed construction of a Medium Rise Building (MRB) in Barangay Lorega, San Miguel, after discovering that the contractor had incurred negative slippage and had not been paid for its progress billing.

During an executive session, councilors scrutinized inconsistencies in the project’s plans, process bottlenecks, and other issues that have hindered completion.

The session was called by Councilor Edgardo “Jaypee” Labella, chairman of the Committee on Infrastructure, following a resolution to approve the charging of at least P109 million for the continuation of the five-story MRB project.

Engineer Roel Tajon of the Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) presented the project’s history, noting that it was originally set for completion within 300 calendar days in 2020, with a total cost of more than P227 million.

The original deadline of August 29, 2021, was extended to September 30, 2022. However, with only 48 percent of the work completed by that time, the project incurred a negative slippage of 52 percent.

Tajon said the project was officially terminated on June 7, 2023. In 2024, the DEPW was instructed to prepare a new Program of Works and Estimates (POWE) with a 330-day completion period. The department also requested that at least P118 million in project savings be declared, proposing that P109 million of this be used to resume construction based on the previous contractor’s design.

According to Tajon, one of the main reasons for the termination was the contract provision requiring termination if the contractor incurs negative slippage.

Seeking clarification, Councilor Harry Eran questioned how the project fell so far behind schedule.

“Why 52 percent slippage? Taas kaayo. It jeopardizes sa intent of the project na magamit na unta and the value of the money nga atong gibutang dira at that time, sigurado nga gamay nalang na ang kantidad karon,” Eran said.

Tajon, who served as project manager, explained that the contractor had complained about not receiving payment for its progress billing.

“Unfortunately wala ma grant ilang reconsideration,” he said, adding that if the reconsideration had been approved, the project would not have incurred such delay.

He attributed the nonpayment to the lengthy government process.

Councilor Harold Kendrick Go stressed the need to determine where the bottleneck occurred. Tajon pointed out that one of the delays stemmed from the City Accounting Office’s requirement for a report to be attached to the billing voucher.

Go also raised concerns about inconsistencies in the project design, noting that too much space had been allocated for common areas.

“Kay kung tan-awon nimo ang total floor area, 7,000, unya ang usable is only 3,700, that is only 50 percent, pasabot ana ang 50 percent is nalabay sa common spaces nga di magamit,” Go said.

The DEPW clarified that the ground floor of the project would serve as an open space, and both buildings would have a total of 170 units.

With more irregularities uncovered, the council recommended a full investigation before rebidding the project to a new contractor and a structural integrity assessment before construction resumes. (CEBU NEWS)