The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said on Saturday it will now turn to the private sector in the maintenance of roads as the government cuts costs and incidents of corruption on infrastructure projects.

"We do not not want to maintain the roads. We want to privatize the maintenance,” Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson told contractors belonging to the Philippine Contractors Association (PCA) which has been tasked to undertake the road maintenance.

A study showed that the lifespan of a road lasts for about 10 years, but there have been instances when a road has to undergo repairs after only one or two years.

Under these circumstances, the DPWH has to spend more money for road repairs, Singson said.

Moreover, in such instances, corruption can happen similar to the irregularities in some flood control projects and dredging works, he added.

However, when road maintenance is given to contractors, Singson said this can no longer be a source of corruption because this will become part of the contract package they will bid out to build the road.

“We should strike a balance of five years,” he said. “But we still have to iron out how we are going to implement this.”

Singson sought the dialogue with PCA, where most of the country’s largest contractors belong, to warn them that “it cannot be business as usual” at the DPWH under his helm. He promised drastic changes in the bidding and procurement process.

“Gone are the days of the negotiated contracts, so do not engage in negotiated contracts. Let us level the playing field. Let us shorten the bidding process,” Singson said during the meeting.

Just last week, Singson cancelled some 19 flood control projects due to irregularities. They were worth P934 million and funded by a loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

In the bidding procedures, according to Singson, contractors can't get away with their modus operandi wherein “they would always join bidding but they would not win.” They may now face sanctions under the agency's three-strike policy, he warned.

It has reportedly been a practice among contractors for some of them to give way to their fellow contractors by placing higher bids in order to get a particular contract at DPWH.