COA flags delayed PNP projects worth over P2B

The Commission on Audit (COA) has flagged the Philippine National Police over delays in the completion of several infrastructure projects worth more than P2 billion, including a new building at the national police headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City, that was supposed to start construction last year.

Another project cited by COA in its 2024 annual audit report released on Dec. 1 was the proposed new building for the Quezon Municipal Police Station in Nueva Ecija, which is under the Police Regional Office 3 (PRO-3) in Central Luzon.

The COA also pointed to the similarly delayed infrastructure project under the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), particularly the Northern Police District (NPD), which it said showed the PNP’s failure to adhere to Republic Act No. 9184, or the Government Procurement Act, and its revised implementing rules and regulations.

The COA noted that the first phase of the new building project at Camp Crame started last year with an authorized amount of P1 billion, with the succeeding phases expected in 2025, 2026 and 2027. Based on the multiyear contractual authority issued by the budget department, the total amount for the project was P2.59 billion.

No contract awarded

But while construction was supposed to start last year, state auditors said that as of Dec. 31, 2024, there was “no successful bidding” with the contract yet to be awarded.

“Thus, this deviates from the planned year of implementation as provided,” they said.

“Nevertheless, the noted deficiencies in the processing of documents and execution of the procurement process resulted in the delays of the implementation of the project, which consequently affected the subsequent phases,” they added.

A similar observation was made by the COA regarding the Quezon Municipal Police Station building costing P10.5 million. It noted that no contract has been awarded for the project, one of nine infrastructure works under the PRO-3.

4 done, 4 ongoing

While four of the nine projects were “100 percent completed,” four were ongoing, while there had been no progress at all regarding the Quezon Municipal Police Station, the COA said.

It added that the first public bidding was declared a failure since bidders were disqualified for failing to meet the certification requirements for its skilled workers, such as carpentry and masonry.

Construction plans for the project showed that its P10.5-million funding under the 2024 national budget was set to expire by the end of the year, with the amount to automatically revert to the national treasury.

“The target completion date of the said projects will not be attained as planned, demonstrating insufficient planning and delayed execution of the procurement process for these particular projects,” the COA said.

It also observed certain challenges surrounding the construction of the P26.2-million annex building for the NPD headquarters, which has been going on for more than four years.

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4-year wait

Work started on Oct. 5, 2020, with completion targeted on Sept. 30, 2021.

The project, based on the COA’s findings, had faced delays and was even granted a time extension due to multiple reasons, such as delays in the delivery of materials, the holiday season, the 2021 onslaught of Supertyphoon “Odette” (international name: Rai) and the deficiency in manpower because of the pandemic.

While the contractor was given an extension of up to Jan. 23, 2023, the project has yet to be completed as of Dec. 31, 2024.

The COA said the NCRPO had imposed liquidated damages amounting to P557,460.03, but the computation covered only the period from Jan. 24, 2023, to Jan. 30, 2024.

In response to the COA observations, the PNP said that a technical working group had been formed to facilitate the crafting of the terms of reference for the new national headquarters building. It will then conduct a “mandatory review and reassessment” of the terms to prevent any further failures, it added.

As for the municipal police station in Central Luzon, the PNP said its engineering unit there had already started work on the project, after a notice to proceed was issued on May 22 this year.