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SIXTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
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JUL -4 All :07 
SENATE 
s.No.A11 
Introduced by Senator Antonio "Sonny" F. Trillanes N 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Republic Act No. 9184, otherwise known as the Government Procurement Refonn Act, was 
hailed as a landmark piece of legislation. Its enactment in 2003 was envisaged to employ the 
much needed refonns in the country's procurement system. A decade since its enactment, 
however, the procurement system is still plagued with collusion, abuse of discretionary criteria, 
malfeasance, misfeasance, and other fonns of corruption. 
On a lighter note, the Philippines has improved in the 2012 global survey, ranking countries in 
terms of perceived c!?ITuption, u~ 24 places from 2011 to 105th, among 180 countries surveyed 
by Transparency International . Much of the corruption suggests itself in government 
procurement, or its acquisition of goods and services. 
To further improve and address transparency of the country's procurement system, or its lack 
thereof, it is imperative to strengthen public monitoring of the procurement process. The public 
deserves nothing less but the highest standards of transparency and honesty in the execution of 
government policies. This is in consistent with Article II, Section 28 of the 1987 Constitution 
which declares that subject to reasonable conditions prescribed by law, the State adopts and 
implements a policy of full public disclosure of all its transactions involving public interest. 
In this light, this Act seeks to strengthen the present procurement law by mandating the video 
recording of all procurement-related conferences. This measure provides that the video recording 
may be subpoenaed and may be used as evidence in court, as deemed appropriatr, in case of 
legal action filed with reference to the enforcement or violation of the Government !Procurement 
Refonn Act. It is hoped that the enactment of this measure will tighten the patent ~oopholes of 
the Procurement Law. 
In view of the foregoing, immediate approval of this measure is earnestly sought. 
~~ \r\\~ 
ANTONIO "SONNY" F. TRILLANES N 
Senator 
1 Infonnation retrieved from www.transparency.orglcpi2012/resultson2June2013. 
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SIXTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPiJBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
) 
) 
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SENATE 
S. No.4 77 
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'13 
JlJL -4 Al1 :07 
Introduced by Senator Antonio "Sonny" F, TrilllP(~ IV 
AN ACT 
ENHANCING THE TRANSPARENCY OF THE PROCUREMENT PR~CESS BY 
MANDATING THE VIDEO RECORDING OF ALL PROCUREMEN1,'RELATED 
CONFERENCES,' THEREBY AMENDING REPUBLIC ACT NUMBERED 9184, 
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE "GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT REFORM ACT 
OF 2003", PRESCRIBING PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS THEREOF, AND FOR 
OTHER RELATED PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
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SECTION 1. Iitle. - Republic Act No. 9184 is hereby amended by inserting a new 
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Article VII and new Sections 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, and 28 therein, to read as follows: 
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ARTlCLEVn 
VIDEO RECORDS OF AI"L BIDDING CONFERENCES 
"SEC. 20. VIDEO RECORDING OF ALL PROCUREMENTRELATED 
CONFERENCES. 
TO 
ENHANCE 
THE 
TRANSPARENCY 
OF 
THE 
PROCUREMENT PROCESS, THE PROCURING ENTITY SHALL KEEP A 
VIDEO RECORDING OF ALL PROCUREMENT-RELATED CONFERENCES 
INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO PRE-PROCUREMENT CONFERENCE, 
PRE-BID CONFERENCE, BID OPENING, AND ALL MEETINGS OF THE 
BIDS AND A WARDS COMMITTEE (BAC), FOR ALL PROCUREMENT 
PROJECTS EQUAL 
OR 
EXCEEDING 
MILLION PESOS (PHP 1,000,000. 00). 
THE 
AMOUNT 
OF ONE 
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ALL PROCUREMENT RELATED CONFERENCES MAY NOT 
COMMENCE WITHOUT A VIDEO RECORDING INITIATED BY 
THE CHAIR OF THE BAC. 
SEC. 21. SPECIFICATIONS OF THE VIDEO RECORDING. -
THE VIDEO RECORDING SHALL BE CLEAR AND SHALL 
PROVIDE A CLOSE-UP VIEW OF THOSE PRESENT IN THE 
CONFERENCE. DURING RECORDING, THE MEMBERS OF THE 
BAC, THE PROSPRECTIVE AND/OR QUALIFIED BIDDERS, THE 
REPRESENTATIVE OF THE COMMISSION ON AUDIT AND THE 
TWO (2) OBSERVERS INVITED IN ACCORDANCE WITH ARTICLE 
V OF THIS ACT, SHALL BE INTRODUCED ONE BY ONE. 
SEC. 22. COPIES OF THE VIDEO RECORDING. - THERE 
SHALL BE MADE THREE (3) COPIES OF THE VIDEO RECORDING 
FOR THE PERUSAL AND/OR RECORD OF THE BAC
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THE 
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GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT POLICY BOARD (GPPB); AND 
THE COMMISSION ON AUDIT (COA). THE VIDEO COPIES SHALL 
BE MADE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC UPON WRITTEN 
REQUEST AND PAYMENT OF A SPECIFIED FEE. 
SEC. 23. WRITTEN AND VIDEO RECORDS AS EVIDENCE 
IN COURT. - IN CASE OF ANY PERTINENT LEGAL ACTION, THE 
VIDEO RECORDS MAY BE SUBJECT TO SUBPOENA DUCES 
TECUM, AND MAY BE USED AS EVIDENCE IN COURT AS IT 
FINDS APPROPRIATE. 
THE BAC, GPPB, AND COA SHALL STORE THE VIDEO 
RECORDS FOR NOT LESS THAN TWENTY (20) YEARS AND MAY 
DISPOSE OF THEM THEREAFTER. 
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THE BAC AND THE GPBB SHALL ENSURE THAT THE 
COPIES OF THE RECORDING ARE REGULARLY CHECKED TO 
ASCERTAIN THAT THEY ARE IN GOOD CONDITION AND NOT 
DETERIORATING, 
SUBlliCT 
TO 
THE 
RECOMMENDED 
CONSERVATION PRACTICES FOR THE STORAGE OF THE SfME. 
SEC. 24. LOGISTICS OF VIDEO RECORDING. - THE BAC 
OF EACH PROCURING ENTITY SHALL BE IN CHARGE OF THE 
LOGISTICS OF VIDEO RECORDING AND OTHER RELATED 
TECHNICAL MATTERS, SUCH AS BUT NOT LIMITED TO AUDIO, 
ARCHIVING, AND SUCH OTHER MATTERS NECESSARY TO 
CARRY OUT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT. 
SEC. 
25. 
PROCUREMENT OF VIDEO 
RECORDING 
EQUIPMENT. -
THE GPPB SHALL BE IN CHARGE OF THE 
PROCUREMENT OF THE VIDEO RECORDING EQUIPMENT AND 
RELATED SUPPLIES TO BE ALLOCATED TO THE PROCURING 
ENTITlES. 
SEC. 26. PENAL PROVISION. - VIOLATIONS OF ARTICLE 
VII OF THIS ACT SHALL BE METED OUT PENALTIES AS 
PRESCRIBED UNDER ARTICLES XXI, XXII, AND xXIII OF THE 
SAME. IN ADDITION TO THE AFOREMENTIONED SANCTIONS, 
THE CONTRACT IN FAVOR OF THE ERRANT PARTY SHALL BE 
NULLIFIED IF THE BID HAS BEEN AWARDED. 
SEC. 27. APPROPRIATION. - THE AMOUNT NECESSARY 
TO CARRY OUT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT SHALL BE 
INCLUDED IN THE ANNUAL GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT. 
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SEC. 28. IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS. -
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WITHIN NINETY (90) DAYS FROM THE EFFECTIVITY OF THIS 
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ACT, THE GPBB SHALL PROMULGATE THE NECESSARY RULES 
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AND REGULATIONS FOR THE PROPER IMPLEMENTATION OF 
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THE 
PROVISIONS 
OF 
THIS 
ACT. 
SUCH 
RULES 
AND 
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REGULATIONS 
SHALL 
TAKE 
EFFECT 
IMMEDIATELY 
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THEREAFTER. 
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XXX." 
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SEC. 2. Renumbering of Affected Articles and Sections. - The current Article 
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VII and subsequent Articles aud Sections of Republic Act No. 9184 affected by this 
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amendment shall be amended and re-numbered accordingly, to reflect the insertion of the 
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new article on "Video Records of All Bidding Conferences" as Article VII thereOf 
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SEC. 3. Separability Clause.·If any provision or part hereof is held invalid or 
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unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall 
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remain valid and subsisting. 
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SEC. 4. Repealing Clause. - All laws, rules, regulations, orders, circulars, and 
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memoranda inconsistent with any provisions ofthis Act are hereby repealed or modified 
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accordingly. 
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SEC. 4. Effectivity Clause.~This Act shall take effect fifteen (IS) days after its 
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complete publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general 
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circulation. 
Approved, 
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