The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Saturday saw no point in reviving the contract with equipment, raw materials, and support services provider AllCard which allegedly failed to deliver its end of the agreement but has sued to enforce it.
The BSP reiterated that the termination of the contract was justified due to delays on AllCard’s part.
“This decision was made to protect the interests of the government, represented by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the primary implementing agency of the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) project. Terminating the contract allows the PSA the freedom to explore other options to expedite the production and delivery of national ID cards,” the BSP said.
Attempts to revive the contract with a supplier that has already failed to deliver will only further delay PSA’s plans to address backlogs, the BSP quickly added.
According to the BSP, AllCard’s role in the agreement was limited to providing the equipment, the raw materials, and technical support and that the procurement of these resources from AllCard was duly reported to the PhilSys Council, chaired by the National Economic and Development Authority and co-chaired by the PSA.
The BSP emphasized that it undertook the printing of the cards to assist the PSA with its mandate under Republic Act No. 11055 and that the BSP properly conducted a public bidding for a lease and supply contract that AllCard won and accepted.
As supported by the PSA on 12 September 2024, BSP has fully complied with Agency-to-Agency Procurement Guidelines under Republic Act No. 9184.
“In strict compliance with these guidelines, BSP and PSA conducted the printing and personalization of the cards, and did not subcontract any operations related to the printing of the national IDs to AllCard. “Other issues being raised distract from these basic facts. AllCard has initiated arbitration proceedings, in which BSP is actively participating. This arbitration is the appropriate forum to resolve the issues, and the proceedings at the Philippine Dispute Resolution Center are confidential in accordance with its rules.
The BSP has not received an official copy of the reported order from the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City but acknowledged that AllCard sent them a copy of the alleged order on 18 September 2024.
The BSP said it will act accordingly once the official order, if any, is received.
