Requesting Entity: Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Regional Office X

Issues Concern: Advertising and Posting Requirement

Details

As expressly provided in Section 14.2.1, it is clear that the provisions of Section 14.2.2 serve as an exception in so far as the publication of the Invitation to Apply for Eligibility and to Bid in newspapers of general circulation is concerned. As such, Section 14.2.2 explicitly provides that if the ABC for the procurement of consulting services is Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (P 500,000.00) and below and/or if the contract duration is four (4) months or less, the Invitation to Apply for Eligibility and to Bid need not be advertised in newspapers of general circulation in accordance with the requirements mandated by Section 14.2.1, provided that it is an imperative for the procuring agency to post the Invitation in: (a) its website, if available; (b) the website of its service provider, if any; (c) the Electronic Procurement System (“EPS”); and, (d) at conspicuous places in the premises of the procuring agency. Section 14.2.2 in part, provides:

14.2.2. x x x For projects/contracts for consulting services with an ABC costing five hundred thousand pesos (P 500,000.00) and below and/or those whose duration is four (4) months or less, the Invitation to Apply for Eligibility and to Bid shall be posted at least in the website of the agency concerned, if available, the website of the agency’s service provider for its electronic bidding system (EBS), if any, as provided in Section 38.5.4 of these IRR, the EPS and posted at any conspicuous place reserved for this purpose in the premises of the agency concerned, as certified by the head of the BAC Secretariat of the agency concerned, during the same period as above. (Emphasis supplied)

It should be noted that the two (2) conditions for the exception to the advertising requirement in Section 14.2.2 above are couched conjunctively and disjunctively: (i) conjunctively, a particular procurement for consulting services may be excused from the newspaper advertisement requirement if the ABC costs five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00) and below and if the contract duration is four (4) months or less; or (ii) disjunctively, the said procurement may be excused from the newspaper advertisement requirement either if the ABC costs five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00) and below, or if the contract duration is four (4) months or less. In its elementary sense, “or” as used in a statute is a disjunctive article indicating an alternative, connecting a series of words or proposition indicating a choice of either. (See Centeno v. Villalon-Pornillos, 236 SCRA 197)

In fine, considering that the indicated project duration for the particular procurement of consulting services is below four (4) months, we believe DENR need not publish the Invitation to Apply for Eligibility and to Bid in a newspaper of general nationwide circulation, provided that the same must be posted at the website of DENR, if available, the website of the DENR’s service provider for its electronic bidding system (EBS), if any, the EPS, and posted at any conspicuous place reserved for this purpose in the premises of the agency concerned.