MANILA (Mindanao Examiner / Jan. 19, 2013) – To further promote transparency and accountability in governance, the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS), in partnership with Landbank of the Philippines (LandBank), launched a new electronic payment facility to allow government agencies to complete online purchases for supplies procured through the PhilGEPS Virtual Store.
The Department of Budget and Management said the new system will help agencies ensure a quicker and more efficient procurement system, as well as boost the Aquino administration’s overall transparency campaign.
“This is a groundbreaking feat for the Philippine bureaucracy, especially in view of the wide-ranging reforms that the Aquino administration has successfully instituted over the last two years. The establishment of the e-Payment system effectively brings us to the realm of cashless transactions, where procurement activities can be tracked and accounted very quickly and accurately,” DBM Secretary Florencio Abad said in a statement.
The PhilGEPS ePayment facility allows agencies to pay for items procured through the Virtual Store at any time of the day. This reduces the time needed to complete a transaction, which normally involves the processing of financial documents and the preparation of checks. Transactions made via the e-Payment facility can also be monitored and tracked conveniently through LandBank’s WebAccess portal.
“The development of this online payment facility is particularly important for liquidating expenses that are charged against public funds. Because every step of the process can now be tracked and monitored, we can begin to close off all avenues for irregularity and, ultimately, establish better accountability across government,” Abad said.
Abad said that besides the e-Payment feature, PhilGEPS is also developing a system that will allow bidders to make electronic payments for membership fees and other charges. This feature is expected to evolve into an online payment system for bid documents.
He added that with the PHILGEPS e-Payment facility, LandBank can now offer similar e-Payment services for other government services, such as license applications with the Land Transportation Office and clearance applications with the National Bureau of Investigation.
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