Requesting Entity: Department of Agriculture

Issues Concern: Failure to Fill in Rates and Prices in the Bill of Quantities

Details

Whether the failure of the lone bidder to fill in the Rates and Prices in the Bill of Quantities amounts to a nonresponsive bid based on Clause 28.3 of the Philippine Bidding Documents (PBDs).

Considering that the subject project pertains to construction, the more appropriate reference is the PBDs for Infrastructure Projects, specifically, Clause 15.2 thereof, which reflects the same policy under Section 32.2.2 (a) of the IRR of RA 9184 as follows:

The Bidder shall fill in rates and prices for all items of the Works described in the Bill of Quantities. Bids not addressing or providing all of the required items in the Bidding Documents including, where applicable, bill of quantities, shall be considered non-responsive and, thus, automatically disqualified. (Emphasis ours)

Owing to the clear and categorical statement of the IRR and the PBDs on the matter, there is no further need for interpretation, but only implementation in line with the plain-meaning rule or verbalegis doctrine in statutory construction.

[T]he failure of the lone bidder to completely fill up the bill of quantities amounts to a non-responsive bid, and consequently, a ground for automatic disqualification.