There was no irregularity in the reduction of janitorial personnel contracted by the Light Rail Transit Authority in 2009, which saved the government money and was ultimately beneficial to the riding public.
This was the reply of former LRTA administrator Melquiades Robles to reports that the Office of the Ombudsman had asked the Sandiganbayan to indict him and 12 others after finding probable cause for violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
In a statement, Robles said the reduction of personnel of service providers of the joint venture of COMM Builders and Technology Philippines Corp., PMP Inc. and Gradski Saobracaj GRAS was made after the LRTA determined that not all contracted janitorial personnel were needed for the work required.
“The reduction is allowed by law as a negative variation order, meaning payment of less than the contracted price,” Robles said. “Republic Act 9184, or the Government Procurement Reform Act, allows variation orders upwards or downwards. Since contracts with the government can no longer be changed once approved, such variations are reflected in the payment vouchers with the contractors, which are in the possession of the Ombudsman, in this case.”
Robles said the minutes of the negotiation meeting last Jan. 6, 2009 between LRTA and CPG show that the parties agreed to reduce janitorial personnel by 87, leading to savings P864,084 in the contractor’s monthly billing.
The proof of the propriety of this action— which was ratified by the entire LRTA Board —is the renewal of the same janitorial contract with the same contractor, with the same conditions, since its approval in 2009 until this year, Robles said.
Three LRTA administrators and their respective boards after Robles have since ratified and extended the same contract, with was also subjected to a special audit of the Commission on Audit, the former administrator said.
Robles also described reports that the janitorial contract was worth P400 million as “inaccurate” since the deal was only worth P3 million a month.
After the contract was signed in 2009, Robles said, he stayed on as LRTA administrator only until August 2010 and could not have paid that much during his term.
Robles said it was ironic that while the Senate and the public are demanding that the current leadership of the Department of Transportation and Communications be charged over the failure of the country’s rail systems, it is he and his managers who are being charged by the Ombudsman.
Recommended for indictment in the charge sheet in a resolution released by the Ombudsman last Tuesday, apart from Robles and the joint venture contractor, were former LRTA officials Federico Canar Jr., Dennis Francisco, Evelyn Macalino, Marilou Liscano, Elmo Stephen Triste, Eduardo Abiva, Nicholas Ombao, Roger Vaño, Maynard Tolosa and Juliet Labisto.