After unfinished Pulangbato bridge: City to screen contractors better

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia admitted that the city needs to elevate its screening process for contractors working with the city to ensure the completion of projects.

This comes as the budget appropriation for the halted Pulangbato Bridge has been approved and will undergo another round of bidding.

In a press conference yesterday, Garcia said the ?32-million proposed amount for the rebidding of the construction of the bridge has already been approved by the Cebu City Council. According to Garcia, he has already directed the fast-tracking of the bidding process.

But he expressed uncertainty about its implementation due to the Commission on Elections’ ban on the disbursement of public funds. Garcia said the source of funds for this project will be charged against the city’s savings.

“Katong wala magamit sa katong permiro nga kontraktor, whatever is left, we will use that as our source of funds, plus the disaster funds,” said Garcia.

It was reported that officials of Barangay Pulangbato urged the Cebu City Government to urgently terminate the contract of SBD Builders for the construction of the Reinforced Deck Girder Bridge in Sitio Candarong to Tanay Road, Barangay Pulangbato, due to "significant negative slippage”.

A resolution passed by Barangay Pulangbato last October 7, 2024 called for the declaration of a state of emergency in the barangay due to the unfinished project, which forced the use of unsafe alternative routes.

The resolution states that the project titled “Construction of Reinforced Deck Girder Bridge at Sitio Candarong to Tanay Road, Barangay Pulangbato” was awarded to SBD Builders with a contract amounting to ?24,052,580.78. The original project duration was 240 days, starting on September 15, 2023, with the completion date originally set for May 11, 2024.

According to barangay officials, despite a time extension of 60 days, which revised the project completion date to September 30, 2024, the current work accomplishment is only 36.02%, resulting in a negative slippage of 63.98% and delays in the project's completion.

Due to the delays in completing the bridge, vehicles have been forced to use “unsafe alternative and makeshift routes” which pose a serious risk to the safety of residents, commuters, and transport operators in Barangay Pulangbato.

Taking lessons from what happened, Garcia admitted that the situation underwent a series of processes, including ownership disputes and other due diligence. With these considerations in mind, Garcia said the city will now be more cautious when selecting contractors.

“Mga contractors nga naa g’yuy maayo nga track record who can really implement our projects here in the city of Cebu,” said Garcia.

“Kay usahay, that is the problem with some of the contractors nga atong makuha, nga mag sige lang og progress billing. Well, there’s nothing wrong, but usahay og dili ka progress billing, usahay di sila ka tiwas,” said Garcia.

He added that it is about time the city looks for contractors that are more qualified and have a better track record to also ensure the completion of city projects. — (FREEMAN)