Requesting Entity: Social Security System

Issues Concern: Habitual Withdrawal of Bids

Details

1. Determination whether an act may be considered habitual withdrawal.

Section 26.2 of the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184 provides that bidders may withdraw their bids prior to the deadline for the receipt of bids by submitting a letter expressing their intention to no longer participate in the bidding. From this, we can infer that the act of withdrawal consists of the acts of submitting a bid and retracting the same. As provided in Section 69.2 of the same IRR, withdrawal becomes habitual when repeatedly done three times within a year.

In this regard, a bidder who purchases bidding documents, but does not submit a bid or a letter of non-participation, cannot be considered to have withdrawn inasmuch as it has not submitted a bid, and therefore, cannot withdraw any. A bidder who secures bidding documents, but submits a letter of non-participation, cannot be considered to have withdrawn since it still did not submit a bid. Lastly, a bidder who submits a bid higher than the ABC cannot be deemed to have withdrawn since it actually submitted its bid and participated in the bidding process.

2. Whether the Uniform Guidelines for Blacklisting of Manufacturers, Suppliers, Distributors, Contractors and Consultants of the IRR is still applicable.

[T]he Uniform Guidelines for Blacklisting of Manufacturers, Suppliers, Distributors, Contractors and Consultants still remains applicable for the suspension or blacklisting of erring suppliers, constructors and consultants.