STATE auditors have called on the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to undertake measures to address delays and negative slippages on several projects worth a whopping P8.664 billion that were listed as “delayed, terminated, or suspended,” effectively depriving taxpayers of benefits due them.
In its 2021 report on the DOTr released yesterday, the audit team said among the projects affected were the P3.76 billion capacity expansion project on the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT3), the P2.783 billion construction of the Unified Grand Central Station — Area A or “Common Station,” the P1.153 billion Land Transportation Office-License Plate Replacement for motor vehicles, and the P392.62 million Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).
The 196-page report listed the MRT3 capacity expansion as delayed by up to four months as of the audit period at yearend 2021, while the Grand Central Station construction was already many months past the original target completion date of January 4, 2021.
The LTO’s license plate replacement deal was the worst of the lot, with delays of more than five years counting from the date motor vehicle owners were charged for payment.
Auditors also said the deployment of nine provisionally accepted light rail vehicles (LRVs) remains uncertain due to issues that set back the DOTr-MRT3’s Proposed Way Forward Plan.
“Likewise, the acceptance of 39 LRVs remain uncertain due to non-completion of testing and commissioning,” they noted.
On the other hand, the contractor of the Grand Central Station has reportedly asked for a third contract extension that was supposed to reset the target completion date to July 1, 2022.
With regards the new license plates, auditors said worse delays are looming since there was a stoppage of production while there was a question of whether or not to continue with the existing plate series or to adopt a new one.
“2,561,629 pairs of replacement plates to the owners of motor vehicles which have been paid and collected in CY 2015 renewal of registration remained undelivered as at year-end due to the stoppage of production,” the Commission on Audit said.
Regarding the PUVMP, which was supposed to have been fully implemented way back June 2019, the audit team attributed the delay of close to three years to the failure to approve the formulation and revision of the terms of reference (TOR) on the hiring of project management personnel and the bidding of the services of procurement consultants.
Responding to the COA findings, the DOTr admitted it has been unable to restart testing and commissioning of the LRVs due to outstanding payables to the supplier which prevents further deployment of the Dalian trains.
On the stalled Common Station for LRT-1, MRT-3, MRT-7, the DOTr cited the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and challenges of the construction site to the work progress.
The DOTr said it received the third request for contract extension on July 10, 2021 asking for an additional 335 days that was supposed to end July 1, 2022 but this was not approved due to lacking additional requirements that would have justified the necessity for extension.
Agency officials said the document required pertains to the reduction of manpower relative to the national government’s imposition of the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As for the replacement of vehicle license plates, the LTO informed the Senate in a letter dated October 1, 2021 that it has already started production and gave assurance that the backlog would be addressed before the change of administration.
Verification by the audit team however revealed that production is at a standstill due to budgetary issues.
The LTO explained that the license plate fees are remitted to the National Treasury so that the fund needed to continue production must be requested again from the Department of Budget and Management subject to inclusion by the Congress through the General Appropriations Act.
