Senator Ramon Revilla has filed a bill seeking to amend Republic Act 9184, or the “Government Procurement Act of 2003,” to speed up the procurement of war materials for the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ modernization program.
He filed Senate Bill 1830 and said a specialized procurement process for defense assets was needed to pursue and sustain programs for the modernization of the AFP and to enhance the capability of military, police and other law enforcement units.
He said this was necessary to address the internal security threats posed by local and transnational terrorists and criminal groups and the emerging security threats.
“Prior to this, the AFP leadership had already asked Congress to introduce amendments to the stringent requirements of the Government Procurement Reform Act to address the unique needs and demands of purchasing defense equipment and services,” Revilla said.
During the recent Commission on Appointments hearing on the promotion of senior military officials, Revilla questioned AFP Chief Gilbert Gapay on the 2019 Commission on Audit report citing the inefficiencies in the implementation of the AFP modernization program, specifically on the projects that should have been completed in 2018 and 2019.
Gapay told him the AFP procurement process was also governed by Republic Act 9184 and the failure of bidding had caused a delay in the implementation of the AFP modernization program. Gapay then proposed that Congress legislate a separate defense procurement act to expedite the bidding process.
Acting on Gapay’s appeal, Revilla filed Senate Bill 1830 “to provide the necessary authority, opportunity and flexibility for the Department of National Defense and the AFP leadership to fast-track its implementation of the long-delayed modernization program.
While this measure would provide an expeditious and specialized procurement for the defense sector, Revilla said it was still anchored on the basic principles of quality and reliability of purchases and accountability and integrity.”
Under the Revilla bill, the Defense secretary may prescribe rules and standards to govern the procurement of defense articles, services and infrastructures to enhance the national defense program.
In his proposed amendment to Section 5 of RA 9184, infrastructure projects would include ship-building projects and the repair, restoration and maintenance of military ships, aircraft and other military equipment.
If the procurement involved national security interests, the Defense secretary, on the President’s approval, may prescribe any of the methods of procurement that may be applicable for the procurement or development of defense articles, services and infrastructures without resorting to competitive bidding, Revilla said.
Under the bill, the procurement of domestic and foreign goods “may limit the procurement of defense articles from known direct manufacturers of the items” to obtain and maintain the desired
standardization and interoperability of military articles inventory to protect the procurement of defense articles against unscrupulous suppliers and to ensure high-quality defense items.
The bill would also provide that the procurement of major defense equipment not available locally could be exempted from the requirement of public bidding, and in view of security and other strategic considerations including confidentiality, interoperability and/or the existence of defense partnerships.
