BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
ILOILO City – For the irregular bidding of five projects, the Office of the Ombudsman ordered the dismissal from service of three department heads of the municipal government of Santa Barbara, Iloilo.
The Ombudsman found guilty of grave misconduct Bids and Awards Committee vice chairman Noel Jaspe (municipal engineer) and committee members Ma. Negenia Araneta (municipal budget officer) and Sanny Apuang (municipal agriculturist).
The “accessory penalties” meted them were the cancellation of their eligibility, forfeiture of their retirement benefits and their perpetual disqualification from holding public office.
A certain Agustin Sonza claimed there were irregularities in the bidding and awarding of five projects:
(1) concreting of Libertad and Arroyo Streets
(2) asphalt overlay of Castilla Street
(3) concreting of Sodusta Street
(4) asphalting of Arroyo Street, and
(5) construction of the Fish Section Building.
The Ombudsman conducted a fact-finding investigation while Commission on Audit (COA) Region 6 conducted a special audit.
There were three bidders – AFG Construction and Construction Supply; Topmost Development and Marketing Corporation (TMDC); and F. Gurrea Construction, Inc. (FGCI).
Sonza claimed the biddings were rigged in collusion with the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC).
During the opening of bids, AFG Construction and Construction Supply verbally notified the BAC that they were withdrawing from project No. 5.
On the other hand, MDC withdrew its bid for projects No. 2 and No. 4.
FGCI backed out of projects No. 1, No. 3 and No. 5.
BAC member Genaro Sonza questioned the withdrawal of bids.
The bidders appeared to have conspired to divide the projects among themselves, according to COA.
State auditors also discovered that TMDC and FGCI have interlocking board of directors and incorporators, and shared the same principal office address.
Panay News tried to reach the respondents for their comments but to no avail./PN
