Friday, November 14, 2008 Sumog-oy: Folly of government's Procurement Reform Act By Ben V. Sumog-oy Issues and views
(First Part)
WHAT usually meets the eye during "congresses" of local government's development planners and bureaucrats is this grand folly notoriously known as RA 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act. This does not become so, without a reason. This satanic law makes a sham and mockery out of whatever sanity there still is in government, and whatever democratic principles there still are in the management of our local governmental affairs.
This dubious law legalizes the equally dubious scheme of putting government procurement transactions back into the stranglehold of unbridled cabals within the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), which are operated by the chosen few who have no iota of accountability to the people in terms of social and public services.
Particularly, this dubious law, coupled with the apparent scheme by favored functionaries within the DBM to defraud local government procurement transactions, has already wrecked havoc in the city health services' arena. It causes massive and crippling delays in the purchase of life-saving medical equipment and supplies, and other items urgently needed for the day-to-day operation of local government-run hospitals and field health service offices.
We have been praying to high heavens that there is no truth to the consistent rumors that these few people, operating in the seemingly "fortified" cabals within the DBM, have now become active operative elements of well-connected corruption rings or syndicates that hostage all local government procurement transactions at the expense of public services.
Sadly, however, nurturing a contrary belief can only merit cynic smiles from hapless local government bureaucrats involved in the procurement of materiel for local governments, as well as, the lowly employees in the DBM regional office who are daily witnesses as to how their bosses are pursuing their fraudulent schemes and marking their targets.
Still to be fair and reasonable, we struggled hard to convince ourselves that, really, there is nothing behind these drab, dirty curtains in the regional offices of the DBM by refusing to believe what we constantly hear. But, all indications exactly point to contrast. They, in fact, serve as harsh criticisms against our seemingly arrogant refusal to believe. Thus, we should not only believe; we should be scandalized; and we should throw handles in wild abandon!
Yes, the situation now in the local bureaucracy had ripened into an objective condition for a local government-led riot against the grave injustice created by this law, whose intrinsic evils have been further reinforced by un-conscientious DBM regional officials who have no temerity in hiding their evil schemes behind the protective cloak of RA 9184.
The local government-led "revolts" against this evil law and its evil enforcers must take place; lest, our collective sense of justice and morality would be put into question. Any radical actions directed against this law and its support elements are plainly justified.
