Saturday, July 7, 2018

Duterte warns Villar on delayed, failed gov’t projects

By Argyll Cyrus Geducos

President Duterte said he will hold Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark Villar responsible for delayed or failed projects of the national government.

Duterte made the statement after he bewailed about how government projects or programs end up getting investigated, and how these projects or programs are delayed due to graft and corruption.

In his speech during the opening ceremony of the National Science and Technology Week in Davao City, Duterte said that the Philippines will never progress in the next 30 years if graft and corruption will not be stopped.

“Wala akong nakitang p***** i**** daan dito sa Pilipinas na natapos on time na hindi produced ng (I have not seen a road in the Philippines that was completed on time and is not produced by) graft and corruption,” Duterte said Friday evening.

“Every program of the government ends up in an investigation,” he added.

The President said that he does not want any more delayed or failed projects under his administration, adding that he will hold Villar responsible if something of the sort happens.

“I’m exacting now something of like this. ‘Yang project mo pagka pumalpak (If your project fails), I will hold the Secretary responsible,” Duterte stated.

“Pag may highway diyan na palpak, the city engineer at itong (If there is a failed highway there, the city engineer, and the) project engineer or whatever, if there is delay or slippage, they call it, and it is about 20 percent perfect, you are out. I will cancel the contract,” he added.

Duterte then warned all Cabinet secretaries, particularly Villar, that he does not want to see any delayed national government projects starting Saturday. If not, the President said they would have to answer to him.

“So I would like to call the attention of the secretaries, especially Secretary Villar, that if there is any slippage of any work of any kind by the national government. If you delay or if I see tomorrow, beginning tomorrow… and you are all invited to see me in Malacañang,” he said.

Duterte also advised the public to sue the government if they get into an accident due to one of its projects.

“‘Yung dinadaan araw-araw ng tao, hindi inaayos. Marami nang nahuhulog diyan, marami nang namatay (They are not fixing the roads that people are using everyday. A lot of people met accidents died, a lot have died). It’s almost a nonchalant so make it a criminal issue,” he said.

“‘Pag nahulog ka diyan, nabunggo ka (If you fall in a hole there or get bumped) [because it is] unlighted, uncovered, ganoon (things like that), you sue the government. Pagka — siguradong manalo kayo diyan (You will surely win),” he added.

“Sue the government and I will sue the supervisor and maybe ask the Secretary, ‘Kindly explain to me kung bakit ganito ang sitwasyon (why is the situation like this),'” he continued.

The government has laid out 75 projects under its ambitious “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program spearheaded by the DPWH. The government is set to spend at least P8 trillion to fund the said projects until 2022, based on the program’s website.

Swiss challenge

Duterte then said that he now wants the Swiss challenge to be the main mode of procurement in government projects, instead of public bidding as the former is less prone to corruption.

“Lahat gusto ko Swiss challenge na lang (I want everything to be done under the Swiss challenge now). Swiss challenge, you produce the bridge and I’ll pay you. If you do not publish it in accordance with the specs, as my specifications, I will not pay you,” he said.

“Kasi lahat ng (Because every) highway acquisition or easements, to widen the shoulders of the road or to make it a full-length ends up in corruption… kung lahat itong p** — walang mangyari sa gobyerno (If everything will be like that, nothing will happen in this government),” he added.

The Swiss challenge is a form of public procurement where, in this case, the government publishes an unsolicited bid or proposal for third parties to match or exceed it.

The government earlier announced that the rehabilitation of the war-torn Marawi City in Lanao del Sur will undergo the Swiss challenge.

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