The proposed New Government Procurement Reform Law may be ready for signing by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in May, according to Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga 3rd District Rep. Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales Jr., a press release from the House of Representatives said.
Gonzales told a news conference at the House of Representatives last week that he met with Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri to discuss the proposed new procurement law, of which Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and the Pampanga lawmaker are the principal authors.
Speaker Romualdez said he expects the Senate to pass House Bill (HB) No. 9648 or its own version of the new procurement law shortly upon the resumption of session of Congress later next month.
He said the enactment process for the proposed new law could be shortened if the Senate would just adopt HB No. 9648, which seeks to repeal and replace Republic Act (RA) No. 9184, the present procurement statute.
The House passed HB No. 9648 in December last year. The Senate opened second-reading deliberations on its version last Monday.
He said in the case of the judiciary, the Supreme Court has “pipeline projects all over the country.”
Gonzales explained that among other features, his bill seeks to reduce the procurement process from 120 days to just 27 days, “starting from the advertisement up to the notice of award, notice to proceed, and signing of contract and (with) one publication only.”
He said the bill would also strengthen the planning departments of agencies.
“Because, everything emanates from the planning department. So, at the DOTr (Department of Transportation), DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways), if you do not have DAED (detailed architectural and engineering design), you cannot bid or award a project if you do not have documents,” he said.
He said the planning office of a big infrastructure agency like the DPWH would require some 15,000 personnel, including materials, civil and mechanical engineers, and architects.
The third salient feature of the proposed new procurement law is the removal of the requirement for the post-qualification of bidders, Gonzales said.*
