Requesting Entity: Quedan and Rural Credit Guarantee Corporation

Issues Concern: Chairman of the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC)

Details

Whether a non-third ranking official can be appointed as Chairman of the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC).

[S]ection 11.2.2 is explicit that the Chairman of the BAC must be at least a third ranking permanent official of the procuring entity. As we have stated in previous opinions, this provision does not provide for any exception to the third-ranking rule. Nonetheless, a second ranking permanent official is qualified to be appointed as Chairperson of the BAC as the minimum requirement is at least a third ranking permanent official.

In addition, the term “permanent” does not refer to whether the person holding the plantilla position is contractual, regular, or appointed; rather, this refers to whether the position exists within the organizational structure of the procuring entity or not. Therefore, a third ranking officer occupying a position, albeit in temporary capacity, is eligible to become the Chairman of the BAC for as long as the office he is currently occupying is an existing plantilla position in Quedancor.

On your concern regarding the prohibition against the VP for Finance from being designated as BAC Chairman being an approving authority, we wish to clarify the rule on approving authority under RA 9184 and its IRR.

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[T]he prohibition stated in Section 11.2.5 of the IRR is intended to avoid any conflict of interest between the person who takes part in a procurement activity and the one approving the resulting transactions. Consequently, such prohibition does not apply to approving authorities where this conflict of interest is not present.

Hence, it is our view that the VP for Finance is proscribed from acting as BAC Chairman for procurement activities involving contracts subject for his approval; and, thus, he can serve as BAC Chairman for procurement contracts that are not within the level of his approving authority.

On the other hand, the EVP, whether he is a second or third ranking official of Quedancor can be designated as BAC Chairman.

In sum, we wish to clarify that only officers occupying either second or third ranking positions may be designated as BAC Chairman and any officer holding a position of a lower rank cannot be designated as BAC Chairman.