NPO should no longer sub-contract biddings of printing contracts - Palace

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang has declared that the National Printing Office (NPO) should no longer conduct sub-contract public biddings of the multi-million-peso printing contracts for the official accountable forms of national government agencies and local government units (LGUs) among its accredited private printers.

In a four-page legal opinion issued by the Office of the President’s Legal Office last Feb. 24, Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs Manuel Gaite said that the NPO does not have exclusive jurisdiction over the printing of official accountable forms of national government agencies and LGUs by virtue of the issuance of Executive Order No. 378 by President Arroyo last Oct. 25, 2004.

Gaite said that EO 378 was issued to ensure that government “benefits from the best services available from the market at the best price.”

He issued this ruling before he was appointed commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Gaite cited Section 1 of the said order which stated that the NPO “shall no longer enjoy exclusive jurisdiction over printing service requirements of the government over standard and accountable forms” and that “it (NPO) shall have to compete with the private sector, except in the printing of election paraphernalia which could be shared with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, upon the discretion of the Commission on Elections consistent with the provisions of the Election Code of 1987.”

The legal opinion was sought by the Department of Finance’s Bureau of Local Government Finance which has recently complained of delays in the delivery of vital forms such as official receipts by the NPO’s contracted private printers.

Currently, many government agencies go to the NPO to have their official accountable forms such as official receipts printed. However, due to its lack of modern printing facilities, the NPO merely farms out these contracts by holding public biddings and selecting private printers that will undertake the printing of government forms.

The NPO charges the government agency a 15 percent service fee for the supposed printing of the forms that was actually undertaken by a private printer.

The NPO, it was learned, has around 33 accredited private printers that could bid for the subcontracted printing jobs.

Official accountable forms are those which the printing office and government agencies have to strictly keep track of and account for, including official receipts and registration like those issued by the Land Transportation Office for motor vehicle registration and driver’s licenses, money order forms issued by the Philippine Postal Corporation, official receipts issued by LGU local treasurers to payers of local taxes and the receipts and other forms issued by government banks such as the Land Bank of the Philippines.

In a related development, newly appointed NPO chief Servando Hizon has gained an unexpected ally in election watchdogs National Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) and the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), which recently backed his appointment.

Henrietta de Villa, head of both NAMFREL and PPCRV, said they have no reason to go against the appointment of Hizon at this time.

“We will give him a chance. He doesn’t have anything that makes us unduly worried,” she said.

According to De Villa, it is unfair for their groups to criticize the appointment of Hizon when they do not know anything about him, except his recent retirement from the military.

De Villa said NAMFREL and PPCRV objected to President Arroyo’s first appointee to the NPO – former Armed Forces Intelligence Service chief Tirso Danga – because there were allegations of election cheating during his term. – Mayen Jaymalin