The Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS): A Tool for Transparency and Satisfactory Service in the Procurement Process of the Presidential Broadcast Staff - RTVM towards System Enhancement

Abstract

This study aims to assess the E-Procurement System, the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS), in attaining greater transparency and bidders’ satisfaction in the procurement process of the Presidential Broadcast Staff – RTVM towards system enhancement. Specifically, it seeks to answer the following questions: 1) what is the extent of compliance of the user’s requirements in the Philippine Electronic Procurement System?; 2) how can the electronic procurement system in the PBS-RTVM be assessed in terms of accessibility, transparency, efficiency, and satisfactory service; 3) what are the problems encountered in the implementation of the PhilGEPS in the PBS-RTVM?; 4) what solutions are offered by the respondents to solve the problems?; 5) what measures can the researcher recommend in attaining a greater level of transparency and satisfactory service in the procurement process of the PBS-RTVM? Generally, the two groups of respondents rate the assessment on the extent of compliance in the requirements for the registration in PhilGEPS “Very Well Observed”. The degree of compliance in the registration in PhilGEPS and requirements for participating in bidding was faithfully adhered to by the suppliers. Further, The BAC members also rated “Very Well Observed” in its compliance in posting in PhilGEPS. Overall assessment on the procurement system of PBS-RTVM using PhilGEPS in terms of transparency and efficiency is “Strongly Agree”, therefore precluding waste of resources and corruption in public funds. Accessibility is being assessed as “Agree”, since the system still has technical glitches that needed to be addressed. The assessment on satisfactory service has different results. The suppliers rated satisfactory service as “Strongly Agree”, which implies that the suppliers/bidders believe that the system is more convenient than the manual system. However, the BAC officials assessed satisfactory service only as “Agree”, since the system still has its technical glitches. Bidders, interested parties, and BAC members should continue to attend procurement training programs to professionalize and improve their skills and competencies for capacity building. The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) should upgrade the current Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) to increase its reliability, accessibility, and performance. Manual system of procurement should also be enhanced while electronic system is still in its upgrading stage. There should be an extensive promotion of the PhilGEPS using social media platform. Moreover, this could also be used to respond to the thousands of inquiries that cannot be handled by the customer service hotlines. Procurement monitoring and the internal control system should be developed and strengthened.