LTO contractor has poor record abroad

[Lee]

Manila Times         By William B. Depasupil and Franco Jose C. Baroña

 

Quote

 

THE German firm Dermalog that operates the Land Transportation Management System (LTMS) for the Land Transportation Office (LTO) has a poor track record in Indonesia and several other countries, reports show.

In Indonesia, Dermalog was contracted by the National Police's Criminal Investigation Agency to set up the Indonesia Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (Inafis) from 2005 to 2012.

The system digitally recorded fingerprints for criminal and non-criminal databases in that country's 32 regional police offices.

But in a letter to Abono party-List Rep. Robert Raymund Estrella, Indonesian Ambassador to the Philippines Agus Widjojo said Inafis has since been discontinued because it was taking too long to capture and match fingerprints.

It has been replaced "with a more advanced biometric system that meets the current needs of our law enforcement agencies," Widjojo said in his letter to Estrella dated March 3.

In 2017, the Haiti government hired Dermalog to set up a biometric system for renewing national ID cards. The Haiti parliament refused to approve the contract, and the Superior Court of Accounts and Administrative Disputes issued two unfavorable opinions on Dermalog in 2018.

Haiti's Senate Ethics and Anti-Corruption Committee issued a report on May 24, 2019, citing serious errors and misappropriations of funds. There were also problems in delivering the ID cards which resulted in long lines in delivery centers.

In Angola, Dermalog was contracted to upgrade the fingerprint ID system of that country's police force. The system developed major glitches that it was never used by the Angola police and eventually replaced in 2017.

In the Philippines, the National Public Transport Coalition (NPTC) called for a congressional investigation into the unresolved issues in the LTMS that have repeatedly disrupted the process of applying for a driver's license, license renewal and vehicle registration.

Ariel Lim, NPTC president, said that after 14 extensions and two-and-half years delay, Dermalog has not fully activated the integrated system of the LTO's IT infrastructure despite the agency paying 80 percent of the P3.4-billion contract.

Dermalog's failure to fully comply with its contract has worsened corruption in the agency and facilitated the registration of colorum public transport and even stolen vehicles, Lim said.

"LTO's processes are being adjusted to accommodate the functionalities of the new system. These adjustments show the contractor's (Dermalog) lack of detailed study before developing the new system," he said.

Lim noted that the six-month delivery timeline for launching the IT system was not met. "More than four years [after] the December 2018 delivery date, the system is still not fully functional and fully rolled out," he said.

The LTMS contract was awarded to Dermalog and its local partners in 2018 under a joint venture agreement.

As of press time, Dermalog has not replied to calls from The Manila Times for comment.

Lim said the LTO charges drivers, vehicle owners, automobile dealers and operators a minimum of P75 per transaction when paying through the Land Transportation Management System (LTMS).

The service fee is allocated for the online portal's accredited payment gateway, Paynamics.

The LTMS was launched last February to allow individuals or companies to use the LTO portal in transacting with the agency.

The LTO had hailed the web-based system as a cornerstone of its five-year modernization program to make the agency more efficient and give its clients the convenience of online service.

Instead, the LTMS has become an added financial burden to the motoring, Lim said.

He said that since the government already owns the LTMS, the public should not be charged additional fees.

Lim said he suspects the system is being used as a "money-making scheme and a vehicle for corruption."

He also wondered if the selection of the payment gateway partner went through the bidding and accreditation process since the service fee turns out to be higher than the usual P25 to P45.

Aside from the P75 service charge, Lim said some motorists, especially those who have limited know-how in using computers, resort to paying P100 to P200 to fixers just to open an LTMS account.

The LTO told The Manila Times on Sunday that P60 is the actual convenience fee charged by Paynamics, but drivers and operators have the option to pay at the agency's district or extension offices.

The agency said that LTO chief Jose Arturo "Jay Art" Tugade is aware that P60 is too high.

Earlier, the NPTC and other local transport groups in Davao filed a case against the Department of Transportation (DoTr) and LTO officials for the continued operations of Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Centers (PMVICs), which they argued was unconstitutional.

The PMVICs conduct a 70-point test for vehicles before renewal of registration and are connected with the LTMS.

The Lupon, Davao Oriental Regional Trial Court is expected to act on the groups' call for a temporary restraining order (TRO) soon.

During a hearing of the House Committee on Transportation last May 11, committee chairman and Antipolo 2nd District Rep. Romeo Acop questioned the capability of Dermalog to deliver the IT needs of the LTO.

In a letter dated March 29, Tugade asked long-time LTO IT provider Stradcom to continue its operations until the LTMS is fully operational.

Tugade said he requested Stradcom to stay until the migration of data from the old system to LTMS has been completed.

The LTO said it is working with the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) to compel Dermalog to fully comply with its contract.

 

 

 

[Old55]

It would be interesting to know the entire story. I have my doubts the way this is written it smells like corruption or an attempt to skip out on a contract. Quoting anything from the Haitian government is beyond laughable. 

[Snowy79]

5 minutes ago, Old55 said:

It would be interesting to know the entire story. I have my doubts the way this is written it smells like corruption or an attempt to skip out on a contract. Quoting anything from the Haitian government is beyond laughable. 

I'm with you on this one. I'm pretty ceretain Dermalog has multiple systems already up and functioning in Western countries where IT experts set up, train and monitor the process until the operators are fully sufficient. My money is on damaged systems due to imcompetence, brown outs and a general lethargy when it comes to learning something new.

When I went for my driving licence I was commenting to my partner what a cash cow this is as the place was full of people renewing and getting their first licence, paying approx 850 peso each then a brown out struck. I was sitting awaiting the generator to kick in only to be informed they don't have a generator. Two and a half hours later I gave up waiting during which time they must have lost out on a good 80k, taking into consideration how many brown outs they have they could have bought the best generator going out of the money they lose each month.

[Ram1957]

One has to ask "why does the LTO outsources all of it's programs to companies outside the Philippines". First it was the plates that turned into the biggest joke, then the driver license cards, corruption in this organization is massive. Yet the government doesn't get involved. That includes the prior and current administration. Why is there no oversight from the congress? That is their responsibility. Will it ever change? I wouldn't bet on it.

[Possum]

I have lived or worked in all four countries mentioned in the article. That they complain about corruption is laughable.

[hk blues]

5 hours ago, Snowy79 said:

I'm with you on this one. I'm pretty ceretain Dermalog has multiple systems already up and functioning in Western countries where IT experts set up, train and monitor the process until the operators are fully sufficient. My money is on damaged systems due to imcompetence, brown outs and a general lethargy when it comes to learning something new.

When I went for my driving licence I was commenting to my partner what a cash cow this is as the place was full of people renewing and getting their first licence, paying approx 850 peso each then a brown out struck. I was sitting awaiting the generator to kick in only to be informed they don't have a generator. Two and a half hours later I gave up waiting during which time they must have lost out on a good 80k, taking into consideration how many brown outs they have they could have bought the best generator going out of the money they lose each month.

I suppose they know folks will have to get their licence/renewal anyway at a later date so they haven't really lost anything - a few pesos interest maybe.  

[hk blues]

2 hours ago, Ram1957 said:

One has to ask "why does the LTO outsources all of it's programs to companies outside the Philippines". First it was the plates that turned into the biggest joke, then the driver license cards, corruption in this organization is massive. Yet the government doesn't get involved. That includes the prior and current administration. Why is there no oversight from the congress? That is their responsibility. Will it ever change? I wouldn't bet on it.

I suspect you know the answer to that question already.  

[Snowy79]

29 minutes ago, hk blues said:

I suppose they know folks will have to get their licence/renewal anyway at a later date so they haven't really lost anything - a few pesos interest maybe.  

There's already a massive backlog of people wanting their licences and vehicles tested and many have jobs so can't just turn up anytime, probably why there are thousands of unregistered vehicles and people going around without licences. On an average day I see over 50 unregistered motorcycles on Boracay alone, even the security guards where I live explain they don't bother registering as it costs too much and they never get caught, if they get stopped they just say awaiting the licence and get let go as even the PNP know the LTO are pretty useless. I'm all legal but still awaiting my annual documentation for my motorcycle which I started in September last year. 

[hk blues]

25 minutes ago, Snowy79 said:

There's already a massive backlog of people wanting their licences and vehicles tested and many have jobs so can't just turn up anytime, probably why there are thousands of unregistered vehicles and people going around without licences. On an average day I see over 50 unregistered motorcycles on Boracay alone, even the security guards where I live explain they don't bother registering as it costs too much and they never get caught, if they get stopped they just say awaiting the licence and get let go as even the PNP know the LTO are pretty useless. I'm all legal but still awaiting my annual documentation for my motorcycle which I started in September last year. 

I understand the issue here with licences (or lack of) but I'm pretty sure the vast majority of those have no intention of getting one regardless of the issues at LTO regarding brownouts.  

[Mike J]

I went to the vendor website where the Philippine project is listed under "success stories".  

<snip>In an international tender for this project, DERMALOG was able to assert itself against all competitors and accepted the challenge of this demanding driver’s license system comprising of a high speed AFIS (Automatic Fingerprint Identification System) and all corresponding hardware to be fully deployed and commissioned within a very tight schedule.<end snip?

https://www.dermalog.com/success-stories/philippines