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IN the
face of presidential orders to clean up the extensive
bidding mess in government after the World Bank (WB)
practically blew the whistle on the practice, Executive
officials continue to snub the Senate investigation on
the WB suspension of its loan for road upgradings.
Sen.
Loren Legarda, chairman of the Senate Economic Affairs
Committee, lead prober panel of the questioned road
bidding for the WB-funded project, cautioned Cabinet
officials who failed to attend Monday’s hearing to
explain the loan mess, hinting the committee may not be
as tolerant if they ignore it anew.
“We
would be tolerant this time but they should remember
they cannot escape questioning,” said Legarda, who
cochaired initial hearings with Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr.
of the public works committee.
This,
even as President Arroyo Monday issued orders to
protect the integrity of foreign-funded infrastructure
projects by, among others, directing greater
civil-society representation in government bids and
awards committees and a well-funded investigation of
irregularities in such projects.
The
Senate committees also asked the Commission on Audit to
submit an updated report on the World Bank-funded
$232-million National Roads Improvement and Management
Program 2 (NRIMP 2) earlier suspended by the WB due to
alleged “collusion and overpricing.”
Bank
executives earlier said they will not resume
deliberations on the road project loan until they are
fully convinced that it would not be tainted by
corruption.
“Definitely, there is corruption in here, that is why
these projects should be looked into,” she said. “We are
sorely disappointed that the invited Executive officials
failed to show up but hopefully, they will be ready with
the documents we are requesting at the next hearing.”
The projects being looked into were supposed to have
been undertaken way back in 2003.
Legarda
said the joint investigators are also asking the COA, as
well as the Executive agencies concerned, to submit a
complete list of all other foreign-funded projects found
to have incurred cost overruns.
President Arroyo on Monday issued Administrative Order
210 titled “Harnessing Government, Civil Society and
Sectoral Groups for Transparency and Procurement
Reforms” shortly after the WB suspended the $232-million
road building loan.
Under AO
210, the President ordered the Pro-Performance System
(PPS) and the Procurement Transparency Group (PTG) “to
review road projects covered by the suspended the World
Bank loan, for report to the President.”
Among
those being asked to testify next week are Finance
Secretary Margarito Teves, Budget Secretary Rolando
Andaya, National Economic and Development Authority
chief Augusto Santos, and Public Works Secretary
Hermogenes Ebdane.
Legarda
said the officials sent word they were not able to
attend the hearing because they were tied up with
disaster relief work due to typhoon Mina.
She
indicated that among the remedial measures being eyed to
prevent irregularities in foreign-funded projects like
the one suspended by the World Bank are tighter
congressional oversight and stricter standards and
safeguards against corruption in these projects.
Among
the other directives of the Chief Executive, meanwhile,
is for the Presidential Antigraft Commission (PAGC) to
report on the suspended road projects, and “consult the
World Bank and other funding agencies on other anomalies
to investigate.”
She also
made sure funds for the investigation are available, by
instructing the Department of Budget and Management (DBM)
to source these.
Finance
Secretary Teves had said before the weekend that the
government is confident of the WB eventually approving
the second phase of the roads improvement program, after
the government had drawn up measures expected to fulfill
the Bank’s requirements.
Among
the safeguards proposed are implementation of a
technical audit, increased transparency in the bidding
process, and the possible adoption of Philippine
procurement laws and processes.
The
tainted road loan bidding was held under World Bank
procedures, which proved to be not as corruption-proof
as the Bank believed. |
