MANILA – The Office of the Ombudsman has charged then Capiz governor Vicente Bermejo before the Sandiganbayan for purchasing four vehicles through a public auction.
Bermejo was held liable for one count of violation of Section 3(e) of Republic Act (RA) 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
Ombudsman recommended a P30,000 bail bond for Bermejo’s provisional liberty.
In 2007, the Capiz provincial government acquired three Pajero wagons and one Isuzu Manlift truck, which were given to the Roxas City government and the Panay municipal government.
The vehicles’ cost totaled P1.95 million, according to the Ombudsman.
The check payment, however, was curiously made payable to Bermejo “as reimbursement,” it added.
The certificates of registration for the two units of 1994 Mitsubishi Pajero wagon and one unit 1990 Elf truck were all dated Aug. 15, 2007 and were under the name of the Roxas City government.
“The procurement of the vehicles was not made in compliance with the provisions of the Government Procurement Reform Act, particularly the requirement of public bidding,” the Ombudsman said. “As verified with the Procurement Service-PhilGEPS, there was no invitation to bid posted at the PhilGEPS website for the procurement of the four vehicles by the province of Capiz for 2007.”
Bermejo’s mode of vehicle purchase, which is through participating in Phil-Pan Subic Ventures, Inc.’s public auction, is “not among the modes of procurement allowed,” it added.
The Ombudsman said, “Bermejo, as the approving authority of the purchases being the head of the procuring entity, acted with evident bad faith in purchasing the vehicles without a public bidding but through a public auction.”
Bermejo “ought to know the basic provisions of RA 9184, which require procurement to undergo either competitive bidding or any of the alternative modes and to implement the law to the letter,” the Ombudsman added.
“Yet, respondent utterly disregarded these established rules,” it stressed.
The Ombudsman also said the fact that the check intended for the payment of the vehicles is issued in Bermejo’s name further shows the irregularity in the purchase.
Bermejo could not be reached as of this writing./PN
