BACOLOD City Councilor Dindo Ramos said Sunday the approval of the three-month extension of contract of services of garbage hauler IPM-Construction and Development Corporation (IPM-CDC) is valid and not illegal.
Ramos, who supported the request of Mayor Evelio Leonardia to extend IPM-CDC’s contract, said the three-month extension from January to March 2018 is allowed under the Procurement Law.
“Some opposition councilors objected the request, claiming that it is illegal, but I told them that it is not new for us because the previous administration’s extension of the contract was also granted and they did not say that it was illegal,” he said.
Last week, the City Council approved the three-month extension of contract of IPM-CDC for collection, hauling and disposal of garbage, and solid waste management.
Aside from Ramos, those who approved the mayor’s request were Councilors Caesar Distrito, Ann Marie Palermo, Cindy Rojas, Bartolome Orola, Noli Villarosa, Renecito Novero and Elmer Sy while Councilors Ricardo Tan and Claudio Puentevella objected.
Ramos explained that the IPM-CDC’s contract will expire this year, but the city cannot hold a bidding because the budget was just approved last week and its effectivity will be in 2018.
“You cannot hold a bidding if there is no approved budget and the Department of Public Services (DPS) is not ready to take over the work of the garbage hauler for lack of facility,” Ramos said.
He said the extension of the contract is the best option to collect the city’s garbage.
Ramos added that the extension of the contract is also for the purpose of the preparation for the bidding that will take two months because of the procedures.
Distrito, chairperson of committee on finance, had earlier said the extension was approved on the grounds that it is allowed under the Procurement Law, and it is highly infeasible and legally impossible to conduct a bidding before the year ends because there is no approved budget.
“We cannot afford to have an environmental disaster at the start of 2018,” he said.
Distrito said the one year and four-month contract of IPM-CDC will end on December 31 this year and that the new contract will start on January 1, 2018 for the garbage hauling and collection services at P14.858 million per month.