GPPB Circular No. 04-2016

Published on 20 October 2017

GPPB Circular No. 04-2016 explains negotiated procurement under the Emergency Cases modality which may be resorted to in the following instances:

1.       In case of imminent danger to life or property during a state of calamity;

2.       When time is of the essence arising from natural or man-made calamities; or

3.       Other causes where immediate action is necessary to prevent damage to or loss of life or property, or to restore vital public services, infrastructure facilities and other public utilities.

Accordingly, in the foregoing instances, the Head of the Procuring Entity (HOPE) shall confirm in writing the existence and veracity of the ground relied upon before approving the contract. Further, when the ground is based on imminent danger to life during a state of calamity, there must be a declaration by a competent authority of a state of calamity pursuant to existing laws before any procurement may be undertaken.

GPPB Circular No. 04-2016 also provides that since the underlying reason for resorting to negotiated procurement under the Emergency Cases modality relates to a “time element”, the procuring entity should consider the appropriate timing or the proximity of the time between the procurement activity and the emergency sought to be addressed so that when the reason or cause for the emergency has already been abated, adoption of competitive bidding as the primary mode of procurement should be considered.

If the contract involves an amount of at least PhP500 Million, the use of negotiated procurement under the Emergency Cases modality must be approved by the GPPB.

The full text of GPPB Circular No. 04-2016 is available here.