MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has decided to slash the cost of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) information technology system project to P3.44 billion from the original P8.2 billion after two failed biddings.
The DOTC said it would hold a pre-bid conference on Jan. 20 and open the bid documents on Feb. 18 for the DOTC Road Transportation IT Infrastructure project.
It added that the project involves the customization, development, integration, procurement, supply, delivery, installation, implementation, service and maintenance of the information and communications technology system of the agency.
The winning bidder would design and implement the required databases; establish or set up the LTO Data Center; supply, deliver, test, document, and install appropriate computing products and other resources relative to the implementation of the project on DOTC or LTO IT infrastructure and environment facilities; and deliver all hardware peripherals with software and corresponding licenses in the name of DOTC and warranties to efficiently run the system.
Likewise, the winning bidder would also operate and maintain the IT service delivery for LTO within the period of the contract and identify key processes and systems for the improvement, efficiency, and security of the DOTC or LTO processing.
Once the system is put in place, the DOTC said it would be easier for authorities to recover stolen vehicles, trace smuggled vehicles, prevent double registration, and monitor unregistered vehicles.
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The agency added that the project would implement a server-based solutions based on an existing system that covers the motor vehicle registration system; drivers’ licensing system; law enforcement and traffic adjudication system; revenue collection system; and executive information system.
The bidding for the project has failed twice, prompting the government to lower the cost compared to the original project cost.
The DOTC declared a failure of bidding last July after the financial proposals submitted by the three proponents failed to meet the agency’s requirement.
All three bidders – Digitext Asia Corp., Fritz and Macziol Asia and Eurolink Network – failed to pass the post-qualification proceedings in line with the provisions of Republic Act 9184 or the Government Procurement Act.
Last Nov. 26, the DOTC conducted the bidding for the multi-billion peso project after five out of the nine companies that purchased bid documents participated in the open and transparent procurement process.
Digitext Asia submitted the lowest bid of P3.8 billion, followed by Fritz and Macziol Asia with P5.3 billion, and Eurolink Network with P5.8 billion.The bids submitted by Kaisa Consulting and Ceragon Network were not opened because of lack of technical requirements.
The four other companies which purchased bidding documents but did not participate in the bidding were Stradcom, Smartmatic, Oberthur Technologies and Indra Sistemas SA.
The DOTC had set the bidding process for the new LTO-IT system in time for the Feb. 10 expiration of the contract of Stardcom Corp. but the bidding for a new P8.2-billion LTO-IT system was delayed by several months when a Quezon City court issued a temporary restraining order (TRO).
The DOTC was only able to proceed with the bidding after the Court of Appeals favored the argument of the DOTC setting aside the TRO issued by the lower court.
Due to the delay, DOTC Undersecretary Jose Perpetuo Lotilla said the agency decided to extend the contract of Stradcom while the evaluation process for the procurement of a new contractor is still underway.
The previous LTO-IT system, which has been running for 13 years, is no longer responsive to current land transportation regulation requirements.
Aside from correcting the flaws of the current system, the proposed project will result in LTO earning an additional P2 billion a year since all computer fees will accrue to the government.
