Bacolod Mayor Evelio Leonardia said the city has requested the Government Procurement Policy Board for an immediate assessment of the query about the bidding for the privatization of garbage collection in Bacolod City from the Bids and Awards Committee.

Leonardia said he met with the executive director of GPPB with some BAC members last week and requested him for an immediate reply.

City Assessor Maphilindo Polvora said former BAC chairman Goldwyn Nifras had written GPPB Executive Director Dennis Santiago on August 7 asking for legal advice as to whether or not they should award the project, or disqualify Metrowaste Solidwaste Management Corp. because the lot it submitted for its transfer station is located in an area classified as residential.

He said the city has an ordinance prohibiting transfer stations in a residential property.

Polvora said this is why the BAC, through Nifras, referred the question to the GPPB.

He said that no one was declared a winner in the bidding since Dynamic Builders only submitted the lowest calculated bid, as required by law.

Dynamic Builders offered a bid of P69,107,140.80 while Metrowaste Solidwaste Management Corp. offered P69,910,711.80, on the P72 million Approved Budget for the Contract for the privatization of garbage collection in Bacolod City.

Polvora said Dynamic Builders was disqualified because its permit was only for hauling services. After that, he said, they proceeded with the post qualification of Metrowaste which had passed the legal, technical and financial requirements.

Leonardia said it is unfortunate that it had gone to that extent, because, otherwise, their garbage collection efforts could already have improved a lot.

So the city is asking the GPPB for an immediate answer and if the bidder qualifies, he only has a month to implement the project, because they have to start for the 2013 bidding, he said.

Leonardia said he hopes that the privatization of garbage collection in the city will push through in January.*CGS

back to top