|
|
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
DOTC official justifies pricing of NBN-ZTE deal (6:10 p.m.)
MANILA -- The fact-finding investigation of the Department of Justice (DOJ) turned into a virtual stage for the government to justify its award of the national broadband network (NBN) project to the Chinese firm ZTE Corporation.
During the questioning by the fact-finding panel, DOTC Assistant Secretary Lorenzo Formoso III defended the US$329 million ZTE contract, saying it was the best deal for the project as compared to the unsolicited proposal of Amsterdam Holdings Inc. (AHI).
Formoso said given the kind of technology being offered by the Chinese firm, the US$329 million contract price for the entire project was reasonable.
He also belied allegations of NBN witness Rodolfo Lozada Jr. that the contract was overpriced to give way to the fat kickbacks of certain officials pushing for the approval of the project.
In the first place, Formoso said, Lozada was never part of the final negotiations with ZTE, as he himself admitted during the Senate investigations.
Formoso said the original contract price of US$262 million increased by US$67 million since the original amount would only cover 30 percent of the country, while the US$329-million proposal will cover the entire country.
"Thus, Lozada's claimed that former poll chairman Benjamin Abalos pocketed the US$130 million in commission was impossible," he said.
"The total contract price was US$330 million, so if you will scrap US$130 million, it will only be US$200. That's even cheaper than their original proposal that only covered 30 percent of the country. If you think about it, this is business. They also have to make money and pay taxes. How will they even finish the project?" the DOTC official said.
He further said only himself and 15 engineering experts from the DOTC Commission on Information and Communication Technology (CICT) where always present when negotiating with ZTE officials regarding the NBN project.
Formoso claimed that the NBN deal is a government-to-government transaction and was in line with the memorandum of understanding between the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and ZTE Corp., to cooperate in the development of various programs in the country including telecommunications.
He added that the ZTE proposal is advantageous to the government since it would entail a 20-year loan agreement at three percent annual interest only.
He also said Jose de Venecia III has no business dealing with government since his father was then Speaker of the House of Representatives when he introduced the AHI proposal.
Under the anti-graft law, the President, Vice President, Senate President, House Speaker and relatives to the fourth degree of consanguinity, cannot take part in government contracts.
The DOTC official further said from the beginning, de Venecia did not want his name to appear as proponent of the AHI bid, adding that in the articles of incorporation of the company, there was no reference to him.
However, Formoso pointed out, de Venecia was forced to admit that he owns Amsterdam during the Senate inquiry.
Formoso welcomed the DOJ inquiry saying this enabled the government to air its side in the light of Lozada's disclosures in the Senate as well as the technical and legal aspects of the project. (ECV/Sunnex) |
|
|
|
