Tolentino wants previous bills included in new Gov’t Procurement Code

Senator Francis Tolentino called for bills he earlier filed to be included the new Government Procurement Code requested by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in his State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Tolentino, who chairs the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, said in a statement on Sunday that among the provisions he wants included are the abolishment of the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM), and the registration of all future joint ventures that will participate in government bidding with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The senator also filed bills seeking to establish a uniform warehousing and inventory system for all government procuring entities, and another which mandates all government suppliers, contractors, and consultants to submit necessary requirements to prove financial capacity.

“Sa totoo lang, anim na bills na ‘yung na-file ko sa procurement. So ito, iko-consolidate na lang kung mayroong bagong version ng Republic Act No. 1984— ‘yung Procurement Act natin—isasama na lang po dito,” he was quoted as saying.

(Honestly, I already filed six bills on procurement so if there will be a new version of Republic Act No. 1984 — the Procurement Act — these will be consolidated into one.)

During his second SONA last week, Marcos called for Congress to prioritize the New Government Procurement Law and the New Government Auditing Code, which he said would need a whole-of government and whole-of-society approach to push through. — BM, GMA Integrated News