Wednesday, December 05, 2007 Nalzaro: Pirated software By Bobby Nalzaro Saksi
THE computer units purchased by the Lapu-Lapu City Government and distributed to the city's public schools have pirated and unlicensed Microsoft programs.
In his letter to the officers of the Mactan Island Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which verified the authenticity the products, Rebecco Ho of Microsoft Asia Pacific based in Singapore said the software units installed in those computers were not genuine Microsoft products.
Ho added that, based on their records, the product keys given by the chamber were not licensed by their company. The firm even offered to assist the chamber in investigating the supplier of the “Microsoft” products for possible prosecution.
Before referring the matter to Microsoft Asia Pacific, the chamber referred it first to Microsoft Philippines, which in turn requested one of their resellers, Thinking Tool Inc, to do the verification. After inspecting more than a hundred of the 470 units, Thinking Tool reportedly found out that the software installed were either pirated or unlicensed.
The supplier, Ken Enterprises which is based in Cebu City, only had a paid up capital of P4 million. But it managed to supply P24 million worth of computer units. An unbranded unit is worth only between P15-P18 thousand but the one supplied to Lapu-Lapu was priced at P45 thousand, prompting chamber officials to suspect there was overpricing.
The issue is now under investigation by the Ombudsman Visayas after the chamber, headed by Efrain Pelaez Jr., filed graft charges against Mayor Arturo Radaza and other city officials for the computer purchase. The move sparked the conflict between Radaza and Pelaez.
The mayor later ordered the closure and demolition of Pelaez business establishments for alleged failure to comply with building requirements. But Pelaez went to court to stop Radaza and an injunction was issued. The court has yet to resolve Pelaez’s petition.
The claim of Microsoft that the software units of the computers are pirated could be included in the investigation by the anti-graft office.
I hope that the Ombudsman would not let that case sleep on their table like the lamppost and Cebu International Convention Center probe. Cebuanos are eagerly awaiting the result of the investigation.
