Road construction and other government projects left unfinished or delayed for too long may soon be a thing of the past. The Duterte administration has finally lowered the boom on errant private contractors undertaking government projects.
Perhaps as exasperated as the public by unfinished road construction and other public works left idle for months and aggravating traffic, the President has ordered all contractors of the Department of Public Works and Highways to complete these delayed projects in a month or face cancellation of their contracts.
Failure to complete will also force the government to give the projects to other contractors and sue those responsible for the delay. The President was referring to numerous unfinished government projects that have remained useless far beyond the lapse of the prescribed completion period.
He cited contractors who had the temerity to corner government contracts by submitting very low bids and yet lacked the social responsibility to finish these on time.
Also henceforth, all upcoming public works projects will be allowed a delay of no more than 30 days. Contractors who fail to finish projects within the prescribed period face the same penalties as the cancellation of their government contracts and possible lawsuits.
Last week, the Department of Transportation also released a directive imposing stiffer sanctions on truant contractors. The DOTr issued a memorandum that government contracts must stipulate that work delays of more than 30 days would result in nonpayment, cancellation of contract, and blacklisting of the contractor involved.
Per the memorandum, the government also has the option to secure the services of another contractor to finish the project. The DOTr said it would no longer transact with irresponsible project contractors as this has resulted not only in delays but also inconveniences to the public.
Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade warned contractors that if they would not do their work right and comply with the agreed timeline, they should not work with the government, which would not hesitate to terminate their contracts.
The DOTr directive, which took effect immediately, was issued following the concern raised by the President during a Cabinet meeting last Feb. 5 on the delays in government projects.
The clampdown on contractors delaying government projects is very timely considering the administration’s ambitious “Build, build, build” program, which is targeted to spend more than P9 trillion on 75 flagship infrastructure projects, such as bridges, railways and airports, for the duration of Mr. Duterte’s term.
Some of these projects under the DOTr are the P9.5-billion LRT Line 2 East (Masinag) Extension Project in Antipolo City, which should be completed by December 2019, and the MRT-7 project in Quezon City.
Last week, the government also signed a P50-billion loan with the Japanese government to finance the initial phase of the Philippines’ first subway, which will run from Mindanao Avenue in Quezon City to the FTI complex in Taguig and a possible extension to Ninoy Aquino International Airport. This will also be undertaken by the DOTr.
The DPWH also has many projects that should benefit from the directive on government contractors.
For instance, the administration’s economic managers have approved the construction of 10 new bridges to cross the Pasig and Marikina rivers. These are aimed at helping alleviate the nightmarish traffic conditions in the metropolis. The government cannot afford delays in their construction.
The crackdown on contractors delaying the completion of government projects should not only ensure the on-time delivery of public projects, but also help ease traffic. For far too long have unfinished road works been exacerbating the constricted flow of traffic in the metropolis.