OVP's meal request for lawyers could trigger procurement issue, says lawmaker

MANILA, Philippines — Another question brought by Vice President Sara Duterte’s request for the Senate to shoulder the meals of her lawyers for the impeachment trial is whether this matter would have led to a procurement issue for the legislative body, Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said on Thursday. Ridon in an online press briefing said that the Office of the Vice President (OVP) will cause a procurement case had the Senate granted its request to shoulder the defense panel’s meals, because Duterte requested for their own caterer which the Senate should pay for. “The way I look at it, it seems that the OVP is basically opening up the Senate for a procurement case,” Ridon, speaking Filipino, told reporters after he and other members of the prosecution panel were asked about Duterte’s letter dated July 7. “Because they want to hire their own caterer, but the one who would pay it is a different entity. So I think it’s the Senate who should decide on what would be their decision regarding this matter,” he added. Under Section 15 of Republic Act No. 12009 or the New Government Procurement Act, having another office to do procurement is only allowed if the procuring entity — in this case, the OVP — “does not have the capability or proficiency to undertake a particular procurement.” However, procuring agents generally refer to government agencies whose primary role is procurement, like the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management. “As part of strategic procurement planning, the HoPE (head of procuring entity) may authorize the engagement of a government procurement agency, which shall undertake the functions of the BAC (Bids and Awards Committee), if the Procuring Entity does not have the capability or proficiency to undertake a particular procurement,” R.A. No. 12009 stated. “Provided, that the Procuring Entity cannot delegate the issuance of the notice of award and the award of contract to the procurement agent and there shall be no transfer of funds to the procurement agent, except for the payment of service fee, if applicable,” the same section added. On Wednesday, copies of Duterte’s letter were released to the media, showing her request for food and beverage from OVP’s accredited caterers due to “legitimate security concerns.” According to the letter, Duterte requested that all food and beverages for her team and witnesses be served only in their designated holding room for their safety, and that the Senate shoulder the costs for these arrangements. “As these arrangements are required solely in connection with these proceedings, the OVP respectfully requests that the Senate shoulder the reasonable costs of food and beverage and catering services for the defense team, support staff, and witnesses,” Duterte said in the letter. READ: Sara Duterte asks Senate to foot bill for exclusive catering at trial But Ridon said this request is “very interesting” as the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court for Duterte’s trial, has no obligation to shoulder the meals of either the defense panel or the House of Representatives’ prosecution team. “The request is very interesting, because it is true that the Senate Impeachment Court has no obligation to pay the food of anyone, whether it is the prosecution or the defense. The truth is that these sides have their own offices, the defense and the prosecution,” he said. “So the defense, the OVP has its general budget, the House has its own general for the impeachment proceedings. So I cannot understand why — it looked like a demand from the OVP, from the Vice President herself — they are asking the Senate to actually pay for the food expenses of the defense panel,” he added. Ridon is not the first House lawmaker to comment on Duterte’s request. On Wednesday, hours after news outlets reported on the letter, House Deputy Speaker Janette Garin said that this request comes off as improper and funny at the same time, since the OVP is an office which has been allocated funds for such purposes. Garin also said she has not heard of such a setup in a regular courtroom proceeding. READ: Garin: VP Duterte requesting Senate to cover meal cost ‘improper, funny’ Aside from this, Garin said that the reason behind Duterte’s request may be offensive to the Senate, as there was an assumption that the meals from the Senate may be bad for them. This is not the first time that Duterte’s requests for a caterer became an issue. Early into the impeachment trial, Duterte grabbed headlines not only because of the proceedings, but because OVP inquired about the possibility of bringing its own equipment, including a refrigerator and coffee maker, to the holding area assigned to the defense panel. The request was made by OVP chief-of-staff and Undersecretary Zuleika Lopez, while the information about the request was provided by Senate Secretary and impeachment clerk of court Renato Bantug Jr. Bantug clarified that such requests are not unusual, noting that the prosecution team contracted their own caterer and brought in their own equipment. /jpv