Ex-Pasay mayor ordered charged over ‘anomalous’ market project

The Ombudsman has ordered the filing of criminal charges against former Pasay City mayor Wenceslao "Peewee" Trinidad and three others over the alleged anomalous bidding for the construction of the city market in 2003. In a 33-page resolution, Trinidad was ordered indicted for violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act in relation to Republic Act 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act; and Article 237 of the Revised Penal Code. Also ordered charged were former City Councilor Jose Antonio Roxas, and Non-Government Organization–Bids and Awards Committee (NGO-BAC) Representatives Joselito Manabat and Alexander Ramos. The case stemmed from the bidding for the construction of the Pasay City Mall and Market, which had an approved budget of P500 million to be funded through the issuance of Pasay City Kaunlaran Bonds. Peewee: It's politics Reached for comment, Trinidad expressed confidence that the court would dismiss the case, saying there was only an issue in the publication of the bidding notice and nothing else. “There is no money involved here, it’s actually pretty simple," he told GMA News Online in a phone interview on Wednesday. He added that the case, which he said has been in the works since 2004, was politically motivated. “This was filed by my political opponent when I had just won (but) I'm glad this has come out in the open so that I can defend myself." The case According to the Ombudsman, Trinidad, on October 3, 2003, issued an invitation to bid for the project but had to request newspapers to hold the invitation’s publication pending the approval of an ordinance for the release of the budget. On October 21, the needed ordinance - City Ordinance No. 2864 Series of 2003 - was finally enacted and authorized the "Bond Floatation." Two days later, a second invitation to bid was issued and published in the Examiner News and the Weekly Views. Three months later, on January 30, 2004, Trinidad, as chairman of the Pasay City BAC chairman, presided over a meeting with "old" PBAC members, and eventually awarded the project to the winning bidder, Izumo Contractors. Investigators from the Office of the Ombudsman said the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) for the City Ordinance 2864 already took effect on October 8, when the ordinance itself was only enacted and approved on October 21. “It cannot be denied that when the second invitation to bid was issued [on October 23], the IRR-A of RA 9184 had already took effect," the Ombudsman said in the resolution. The Ombudsman said Trinidad's meeting with the old PBAC members was "highly irregular" because the new members should have participated in conducting the bidding process. In December 2003, Trinidad had already issued an executive order creating the new set of PBAC members, effective January 2004. "Simply put, the new PBAC under RA 9184 is the legitimate body who should have conducted the bidding process no more, no less," the resolution said. - with Kimberly Jane Tan/KBK, GMA News