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MANILA – The National Bureau of Investigation asked the Office of the Ombudsman to file graft charges against current and former National Printing Office officials over an allegedly anomalous P74-million printing deal with three private companies.
NPO director Sherwin Prose Castaneda, former officer-in-charge Rolando Caluag and retired employee Ruben Dancel violated the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, or Republic Act 3019, the NBI said in a seven-page transmittal letter.
Western Visayas Printing Corp. (WVPC) vice president Edwin Malapajo, Bestforms, Inc. president Benjamin Yam, Triprint Corp. president Ramil Tamayo, and Metrocolor Corp. general manager Celso Viray were also recommended for prosecution.
The case stemmed from the multimillion-peso contract awarded by the Social Security System to the NPO for the bulk purchase of 870,000 pads of contributions payment form for fiscal year 2016.
A preliminary investigation by the NBI Anti-Fraud Division found that even though the NPO already awarded the printing contract to WVPC, work orders were still granted to three other firms – Best Forms Security Printer, for P34 million; Tri-Print Work, for P27 million; and Metro Color, for P15 million.
The agreements entered into by the respondents were disadvantageous to the government given that the printing machines were not under NPO control. The paper, ink and other consumables used for the printers came from the same firms without proper public bidding, the NBI said.
“This is contrary to a proper contact of lease, where the NPO is supposed to simply rent the printing machines and use for its printing jobs. This printing machine, owing to the security nature of the printing jobs, should also be within the control of the NPO, and operated by its personnel,” the NBI reported.
“The NPO only occasionally sends to the lessor-printers plant a representative who inspects the machine. This is precisely why, during our interview with NPO personnel, they cannot assure us that the printing by private printers are strictly controlled and there can be no possibility of overprinting,” said the bureau.
Moreover, investigators found that the NPO only had a “highly disadvantageous” 15 percent share of the profits from the deal, while 85 percent went to the private firms.
“This is clearly disadvantageous to the government and punishable under Republic Act 3019,” the NBI said.
“While the NPO was paid P2.5 million for the project, the NPO had to pay the rental fee to the lessor-printer in the amount of P2.1 million, which is more or less equivalent to 85 percent of the printing project. This is clearly disadvantageous to the government and punishable under … [the] Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act,” it said.
The Presidential Communications Operations Office asked the NBI look into the deal at the NPO – its attached agency – after a PCOO investigation uncovered alleged violations of the Government Procurement Reform Act and the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. (PNA)
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