Amid increasing public scrutiny, Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong yesterday defended the construction of the P110-million sports and parking facilities in Burnham Park, saying the contract was aboveboard.
In an interview with The STAR’s online show ‘Truth on the Line,’ Magalong insisted there was no corruption involved in the awarding of the contract to the Discaya-owned St. Gerrard Construction Corp.
‘Malinis po ‘yan, walang kalokohan (That’s clean, no shenanigans),’ Magalong said, noting the city government is committed to upholding transparency in infrastructure development.
He stressed that when the contract was won through open bidding, the corruption scandal involving the Discayas had not yet come to light.
Magalong said the completion of the project was rushed as the contractor had promised to finish the facilities in January this year.
The rushed completion of the project raised concerns regarding the structural integrity and safety of the facilities.
‘Since January, we have been collecting P20,245 in unliquidated damages every day. We have so far collected P6.6 million,’ he said.
Magalong said the city government has yet to pay the contractor P27 million in remaining balance of the cost of the contract.
He said St. Gerrard resorted to subcontracting or hired another company to undertake the construction. The city government was not immediately informed about the matter, causing concerns about the quality and reliability of the facilities.
Despite the issue, Magalong said the city government allowed the contractor to proceed with the repair and finishing works as filing of charges would further delay the completion.
He said the city engineering office is monitoring the repair.
‘If the defects of the facilities will persist, we will be compelled to file charges against the contractor,’ Magalong said.
The project has drawn flak as it is being undertaken by a company owned by the Discayas, who are currently embroiled in controversial and substandard flood-control projects of the government.