Parañaque awards garbage deal despite COA probe

MANILA, Philippines - The city government of Parañaque awarded yesterday a three-month garbage collection contract to the lone qualified bidder despite an investigation by the Commission on Audit (COA) on allegations of bid rigging.

In a statement, the city government said it will save more than P14 million by awarding the contract to Leonel Waste Management Corp., which submitted a P91.6-million bid to provide garbage collection and hauling services covering the city’s two districts from October to December this year, or P30.5 million per month. The approved budget for the contract was P101,805,500.

“This contract is clearly most advantageous to Parañaque City considering that the garbage hauling contract under the previous administration cost a little more than P35 million monthly,” bids and awards committee (BAC) chairman and city administrator Fernando Soriano said.

The COA earlier asked the BAC to answer allegations of bid rigging by a group of concerned citizens, led by Jerry Marcelo.

Soriano denied Marcelo’s allegation that “the bidding for the contract for the collection, hauling and disposal of garbage was known only to one supplier and that there was absence of competition in the bidding for the contract.”

More than the savings, Soriano said the awarding of the contract ensures that there will be no repeat of the garbage pileup that infuriated the residents of Parañaque shortly after Mayor Edwin Olivarez took office last June 30.

He maintained that he followed the government procurement law to the letter.

He also told COA that contrary to reports, at least three companies secured eligibility documents before the Sept. 4 deadline for submission, but only Leonel qualified.