Government Procurement Policy Board Technical Support Office(GPPB)

July 5, 2022 Dear Mr. Realin, Greetings! Thank you for your request dated Jun 11, 2022 11:34:00 AM under Executive Order No. 2 (s. 2016) on Freedom of Information in the Executive Branch. Your Request You sought clarification on whether airline tickets in relation to foreign travels for training and seminars may be procured through Direct Retail Purchase under Section 53.14. And for such purpose, you requested a copy of the GPPB Resolution providing the basis thereof. Response to Request Your FOI request is approved. Firstly, we wish to note that Section 4.5(b) of the 2016 revised IRR of RA No. 9184 excludes from the coverage of Procurement Activities the participation of officials and other employees of a Procuring Entity in local and foreign scholarships, training, continuing education, conferences, seminars or similar activities that are part of its career and personnel development plan, in accordance with Section 25 of RA 2260, as amended, and Sections 30 and 21 of Book V Title I Subtitle A Chapter 1 of the Administrative Code of 1987. This means that the payment of tuition fees or training fees, including airfare, relative to such trainings and activities are not strictly governed by RA No. 9184, but subject to applicable COA, CSC and DBM rules and regulations. For further information on this matter, we enclose a copy of Non-Policy Matter No. 038-2017. In view of the foregoing, we advise that you determine first whether the intended foreign travel is not one of those excluded instances covered by Section 4.5(b). In response to your other request, we enclose herewith a copy of the following documents, all posted on our website, that can justify a resort to Direct Retail Purchase under Section 53.14 to conduct the procurement of airline tickets: 1. GPPB Resolution No. 21-2019 Approving the Delisting of Airline Tickets under the Government Fares Agreement in the List of Common-Use Supplies and Equipment of the Procurement Service https://www.gppb.gov.ph/issuances/Resolutions/GPPB%20Resolution%20No.%2021-2019..pdf 2. Non-Policy Matter (NPM) No. 019-2019 Delisting of Airline Tickets from the List of CSE of the Procurement Equipment of the Procurement Service https://www.gppb.gov.ph/GPPBTSO_Non-Policy/1746 3. GPPB Resolution No 24-2019 Approving Section 53.14 of the 2016 revised IRR of RA No. 9184 and the Amendments to the Affected Provisions in Annex H Thereof https://www.gppb.gov.ph/issuances/Resolutions/GPPB%20Resolution%20No.%2024-2019.pdf 4. 2016 Revised IRR of RA No. 9184 (Updated as of 30 September 2021) See Annex H https://www.gppb.gov.ph/assets/pdfs/9th%20Ed%202016%20revised%20IRR_3rd%20Quarter%20Updates.pdf >. Your right to request a review If you are unhappy with this response to your FOI request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review of the response by writing to Executive Director, Atty. Rowena Candice M. Ruiz, thru e-mail address at [email protected]. Your review request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this response and should be made within fifteen (15) calendar days from the date when you received this letter. We will complete the review and tell you about the result within thirty (30) calendar days from the date when we receive your review request.     If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Office of the President under Administrative Order No. 22 (s. 2011).  Thank you. Respectfully, FOI Receiving Officer FOI Officer