We're not to blame for delay in release of NBI clearance - MDC

MANILA, Philippines - Mega Data Corp. (MDC), the company that ran the clearance processing system at the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said yesterday they did not cause the delay in the issuance of clearances to the public.

In a statement to The Star, Rafael Garcia III, president and chief executive officer of MDC said they were “forced to close and withdraw its systems” from Victory Central Mall in Caloocan City because its contract with NBI expired last June 30, 2011 adding that NBI’s lease contract with the mall also expired on the same day.

“We, however, still maintain our systems in NBI satellite offices in Metro Manila, clearance renewal centers in malls and regional offices, and our people have been on standby in case the agency would require our clearance renewal services,” Garcia said.

Garcia said NBI has opted to manually process clearance applications in its regional office resulting in a 20-day processing delay to the detriment of the public.

He said MDC is prepared to continue processing NBI clearance applications until the NBI or the Department of Justice(DOJ) conducts a new bidding. But he said the NBI or DOJ’s approval is needed before MDC could continue the computerized renewal service.

Garcia said an earlier statement by the NBI that there could be delays in the release of NBI clearance after the contractor’s pullout, created a wrong impression on the integrity of MDC.

Gerry Perdido, who is with the NBI’s technical services unit, earlier said the bureau will definitely undergo a “downtime” in the processing and release of clearances, “but we are doing everything to address this concern. Perdido said the NBI releases about 22,000 clearances daily nationwide.