Office of Grant Management and State Clearinghouse Administrator Epiphanio Cabrera Jr. smiles as he appears before the Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee on Thursday.
THE storage of a new rock crusher at the Rota harbor should not cost the government money, Office of Grants Management and State Clearinghouse Administrator Epiphanio E. Cabrera Jr. told the Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee on Thursday.
The purchase of a new rock crusher for the Rota Mayor’s Office is one of the projects for which OGM-SC stands to collect indirect cost reimbursement.
OGM-SC bought the equipment so that the Rota municipal government can implement a public-private partnership to operate a quarry on the island.
However, Cabrera said, “I’ve been hearing there is an amount floating around” for the cost of storing the new rock crusher at the Rota harbor.
The amount is $40,000, he said, and the agreement is between Rota Mayor Aubry Hocog and Rota Terminal and Transfer or RTT.
“But that is not supposed to be the way,” Cabrera said, adding that the vendor of the rock crusher assured OGM-SC that the storage of the equipment at the RTT facility should not cost the government money.
Cabrera said he has also advised the Rota mayor to take the equipment out of the Rota harbor.
Sen. Paul A. Manglona told Cabrera that the rock crusher has been “sitting” at the RTT facility since the equipment arrived on Rota six months ago. “You gave us your word that the vendor assured your office that the government will not incur a penny,” Manglona added.
“We will resolve it,” Cabrera said, adding the OGM-SC will “fix” the problem.
He said the Rota quarry would open as soon as OGM-SC submitted the grant, which was due Friday.
Cabrera said OGM-SC’s job was to buy the equipment, which is now owned by Rota mayor whose job is to execute a public-private partnership to operate the Rota quarry.
Variety was told that the Rota mayor is the partner of RTT crane operator, Fidel Mendiola, who is a first cousin of RTT General Manager Viola Hocog-Atalig.
Conflict of interest
Brien Nicholas Jr., the acting director of Department of Finance’s Procurement Services, has raised the issue of conflict of interest regarding the operation of the Rota quarry.
In his letter to the Rota mayor in May, Nicholas said the public-private partnership in the operation of the only quarry on Rota “presents a conflict of interest for you due to a familial relationship that exists between yourself and the quarry owners.”
Nicholas acknowledged the mayor’s request for an invitation to bid to procure an independent contractor who will operate the rock quarry, but he cited the law prohibiting government employees from participating in a procurement action in which the employee’s family has a financial interest in the procurement.
Variety was unable to get a comment from the Rota mayor.
