Requesting Entity: Department of Trade and Industry-Region XI

Issues Concern: BAC Composition at the Regional Offices

Details

Whether the Finance and Administration Division (FAD) Chief of a regional office can concurrently be a Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) member and BAC Secretariat Head.

Although we note that RA 9184 and its IRR do not categorically prohibit the HOPE from designating the same personnel as BAC member and BAC Secretariat Head, we expressed the view in a previous opinion that “procurement officials should avoid holding concurrent positions in the BAC and its Secretariat in accordance with the thrust to professionalize the procurement organization geared towards strengthening the procurement functions in order to increase operational effectiveness and efficiency.” We note that concurrent appointments as BAC member and BAC Secretariat Head diminishes the effectiveness of the BAC and BAC Secretariat in carrying out their functions.

In this regard, x x x procuring entities should avoid designating procurement officials to hold concurrent positions in the BAC and the BAC Secretariat in view of the delineation of functions of their respective offices.

Whether a regional office, with only five (5) division chiefs, can designate a 4th level official as BAC member.

[O]nly regular BAC members are required to be at least a third ranking permanent personnel. Section 11 of the IRR mentions the qualifications of provisional BAC members as an officer who has technical expertise, while the other, a representative from the end-user unit. It does not require provisional BAC members to be of a specific rank, thus implying that an employee of any rank, even below a third ranking permanent official, i.e., fourth ranking permanent officials, can qualify as provisional BAC members.

In view of the foregoing, we are of the view that fourth ranking permanent officials of regional offices are disqualified from becoming regular BAC members, but may be designated as provisional BAC members.