Chiz wants review of triple hike in project cost
Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero yesterday suspended the construction of the new Senate building in Taguig City after learning that the project cost has jumped to P23 billion from P8.9 billion.
In a speech after attending his first flag-raising ceremony as Senate chief, Escudero told officials and employees of the upper chamber that the planned transfer to the new building this year will be delayed.
“Kahit hanggang 2025, sa palagay ko ay hindi pa rin dahil marami pang bagay na kailangan ihanda at maraming bagay din na aming nakita at nagisnan na kailangan pang suriin at pag-aralan (I think that we cannot transfer yet to our new building even by 2025 because there are still a lot of things that we need to fix, still many more to scrutinize and study),” Escudero said.
Construction of the new Senate building started on March 2019, with the structure initially set to be finished by 2022. The completion date was moved due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Senators have projected that plenary sessions will be held in the new building in July this year when sessions resume after their sine die break.
Escudero said he was surprised upon learning that the budget required to complete the new building has ballooned to P23 billion.
The initial budget for the new Senate building was pegged at P8.9 billion.
But a detailed report on the undertaking submitted to the Senate chief’s office last Friday showed that P13 billion has so far been spent for project, with an additional P10 billion still needed to finish it, or a total of P23 billion in building cost.
DEFER AND REVIEW
Escudero told Senate employees that he has ordered Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, chairman of the Committee on Accounts, to defer payments to the project contractor and to review the costing of the building.
Cayetano last week submitted his panel’s report and recommendations on the increased project cost, quality issues, and management inefficiencies surrounding the new Senate building.
The Committee on Accounts is responsible for ensuring the smooth transfer of the Senate to the new building and oversee the project’s quality and timeliness. It was formerly headed by Sen. Nancy Binay.
Escudero said the preliminary review conducted by the Cayetano committee showed numerous deviations and modifications to the project that were not properly validated, which led to additional expenses amounting to P833 million, nearly 10 percent of the original contract price.
He also said inspections made by the Senate Coordination Team raised questions on the quality of workmanship and adherence to the original terms of reference.
The team likewise said there were delays in procurement and missteps by the project manager, and the Department of Public Works and Highways which contributed to project slowdowns and cost overruns.
Escudero said he approved Cayetano’s recommendations to defer payments to the contractor and review the new building cost, including identifying immediate and underlying problems in the project and compelling the DPWH to question, evaluate, and rectify issues that can still be corrected.
In his report, Cayetano said the DPWH’s actions will be decisive in determining whether the agency and the contractor, HillMarc’s Construction Corporation, will implement the remaining portion of the project, which has an approved budget of P10.33 billion but is yet to be awarded.
Cayetano also suggested compelling the DPWH to create a high-level liaison team for the project, to be composed of the DPWH’s Unified Project Management Office as project manager and the Bureau of Design for proper coordination.
Cayetano also advised that the Senate engage a third-party construction management team to help clarify and validate the project to date, both technically and financially.
This, he said, will aid in a value engineering exercise to reduce the cost of the building, considering the high projected cost, subsequent delays, and the desire to turn over a building that conforms to the original design intent.
NO FAULT-FINDING
In a chance interview after the flag raising ceremony, Escudero clarified he is not accusing anyone of any irregularity. The review, he said, is meant to clarify if the spending on the new building is reasonable.
He said he wants to know why the budget required for putting up the new Senate building ballooned to P23 billion.
“Susuriin namin at tityiyakin na tama at maayos at hindi naman medyo sobra o OA yung gastos. Yun lang naman (We will scrutinize it to determine if the expenses are reasonable, or if we did not overspend. That’s all I want),” he added.
He said it will depend on Cayetano if he will ask Sen. Nancy Binay, the former committee chairman, to explain why the budget required has gone up to P23 billion.
Former Sen. Panfilo Lacson, who was the Committee on Accounts chairman when the project started, said the DPWH is the implementing agency and has been the one which submits cost estimates and variation orders (VO), which the Senate can either accept or reject.
“What I understand, based on my own inquiry with my former staff/team of consultants, who eventually joined Sen. Nancy (Binay) who succeeded me as the Senate Accounts Committee chairperson under Sen. Zubiri, not a single peso of the P10.3 billion additional funds, while already part of the 2023 GAA (General Appropriations Act) and covered by MYCA (Multi Year Contractual Authority) has been awarded since Sen Nancy and her team consistently objected to the DPWH’s requests for VO,” Lacson said in a message to reporters.
He said the new total cost of P23.3 billion includes the cost of land acquisition, which was valued at that time at P1.62 billion at P90,000 per square meter. He said the value of the lot has “tremendously appreciated” since then.
“I understand, and this may not be accurate that the current real estate value in that same area is P500,000 per square meter,” he added.
Lacson said there is a multi-level basement parking provision to accommodate senators, their staff and employees but was not sure if that has been modified.
Escudero earlier said that the new Senate building lacks parking space.
Escudero also said that he found out that the senators’ office spaces were small as compared to the offices at its present site at the GSIS Building in Pasay City.
Lacson said he will have to check if he office spaces have been modified too “since I acceded to Sen Koko Pimentel’s request to accommodate at least 65 regional elected senators in case the proposed amendment of the Constitution would materialize at that time.”
“So, I cannot imagine that offices in the new Senate building could be smaller that the GSIS building presently occupied by the Senate,” he said.
