[ Manila Bulletin Online ] February 12, 2009
Train coaches worth about $ 81.6 million (more than P3.83 billion) are in danger of becoming white elephants unless the government decides soon to build the structures, including the rails, for the Light Rail Transit (LRT) extension project up to Cavite.
This was gathered yesterday from Filipino construction mogul Philip Cruz of Filsystems Consortium who also accused the LRT administration of committing serious irregularities in the bidding for the LRT Line 1 extension being constructed along E. de los Santos Avenue (EDSA).
Appearing in a congressional hearing called by the House Committee on Oversight, Cruz said the LRT Administration (LRTA) allegedly infringed on his copyright of the LRT 1 extension plan which the state-owned firm adopted without his knowledge.
LRTA president Melquiades Robles laughed off Cruz’s charges as mere sour graping for losing the billion peso contract to an equally big local construction firm, the DM Consunji Inc. (DMCI)
Robles said he is ready to confront Cruz with the facts of the train purchase made two years ago.
"With regards to the alleged bidding irregularities, Cruz should have challenged the proceedings as provided under Republic Act 9184 or the Procurement Law. He should have exhausted these remedies instead of going to the House and the media," Robles said.
According to him, the supposed copyright infringement issue should be presented to the courts.
Robles explained that the trains delivered out of the .1 million contract were used as part of the capacity expansion program of the LRTA.
"That’s ridiculous, the trains have been rolling for two years now. The Cavite LRT extension will have its own trains, not these ones," he stressed. "He is a losing bidder, he has an ax to grind against us."
In yesterday’s legislative hearing, Melchor Plaza, deputy secretary general of the 1-0AK partylist group, sought an inquiry into the acquisition of 48 train coaches which have reportedly been delivered even before the railway structure could be built
Plaza accused LRTA chairman and Transportation Secretary Leandro Mendoza of sitting on the allocation authority that would guarantee funding for the Cavite mass transit project.
Reacting to the statements of Cruz and Plaza, Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez, committee chairman, said the House panel will set another hearing to tresh out the issue which was first brought up during legislative assessment of existing railways projects in Metro Manila.
Quezon City Rep. Vincent "Bingbong" Crisologo sought a House investigation on the railway projects as he called for better coordination among implementing agencies to ensure order in Metro Manila streets.
Cruz said the LRTA committed abuse of authority for disqualifying him from the bidding for a supposed violation of the rules allegedly also committed by DMCI.
He claimed that the winning bidder had no previous track record in the construction of railway structures, in violation of the Procurement Law.
Cruz claimed his firm had drawn the full plan and design of the LRT- EDSA extension, adding that he had it copyrighted before giving the government a copy of his proposal.
After junking his offer, the LRTA adopted the same design Filsystems drew, Cruz said.
The LRT Line 1 extension up to Cavite is part of the government’s infrastructure blueprint to solve traffic congestion in the National Capital Region. At present, Line 1 runs only from Monumento in Caloocan City up to Baclaran in Parañaque. (Ben R. Rosario)
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