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By Anthony Vargas, Reporter
THE Department of National Defense on
Friday rescinded the P1.2-billion contract for night-capable attack
helicopters following alleged irregularities in the bidding process.
At the same time, the Defense department
recommended that Asian Aerospace Corp. (AAC), the supposed winning
bidder, be barred from joining future biddings involving the
acquisition of military hardware. AAC is the local partner of US
company McDonnell Douglas.
Defense Undersecretary Ariston de los Reyes,
head of the fact-finding team that investigated the matter, said the
bidding procedures for six MD-530F attack helicopters were not
followed.
The undersecretary said the fact-finding team
found that AAC is the only bidder that prequalified, and it made
some “alterations” or modifications in the specifications of the
MD-530F helicopters.
“If there had been consummation of the
acquisition of the helicopters, we could have ended up with
helicopters that were not the ones intended by the department to be
acquired,” de los Reyes told reporters in a press conference at
Camp Aguinaldo.
He said the fact-finding team found out that the
helicopter offered for sale by AAC did not meet the specifications
made by the Air Force.
The Air Force wanted an attack helicopter that
had a minimum payload of 3,000lbs., inclusive of the pilot’s
weight. However, AAC made it appear that the MD-530F met that
payload requirement, which turned out to be false.
More detailed investigation to follow
De los Reyes added that Defense Secretary
Gilberto Teodoro Jr. has directed the fact-finding team to dig
deeper and conduct a more detailed investigation to identify who
will be held liable for the irregularities in the bidding process.
“The Secretary of National Defense has ordered
the investigating committee to conduct [a] more detailed
investigation as to the possibility of some Defense department or
AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] personnel being held
liable,” he said.
The Defense department’s Bids and Awards
Committee is chaired by Defense Assistant Secretary Roberto Nuqui,
and its members include Directors Edna Gueverra, Gladys Cagadoc and
Jerry Jalandoni. Its provisional members are Lt. General Antonio
Romero and Maj. General Ike Insierto.
The undersecretary said Asian Aerospace could be
also held liable for misrepresentation, when it said in their
bidding papers that their aircraft complied with the minimum payload
requirement set by the Air Force.
The investigation on the bidding stemmed from a
complaint filed by PZL Swidnik S.A., a Poland-based company that
claimed the bidding “favored” Asian Aerospace.
Swidnik was offering an advanced version of the
Russian-made Mi-2 Plus attack helicopters, known as Kania or Kitty
Hawk. Another company, Agusta-Westland of Italy was disqualified
from the bidding after it could not guarantee that it could deliver
its helicopters within a 12-month period.
The bidding for the acquisition of night-capable
attack helicopters was opened in September last year as part of the
military’s drive to modernize its equipment.
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