Events
Government offices buy events too: a department’s anniversary, a city’s investment forum, a state university’s conference. Since 2024 they buy them under Republic Act No. 12009, the New Government Procurement Act, which revised RA 9184. It covers “all branches and instrumentalities of the national government”, including state universities and colleges, government-owned corporations and local government units. Here is what it asks of an events agency that wants to bid.
What counts as an event purchase under the Act?
The Act sorts every purchase into goods, infrastructure projects or consulting services. Goods cover “all items, supplies, materials, and general support services, except Consulting Services and Infrastructure Projects”, including “non-personal or contractual services”. Read which category the bidding documents use, because it decides how the bids are evaluated.
What do you need before you can bid?
A PhilGEPS registration. The Bids and Awards Committee “shall require the submission of the prospective bidder’s valid and updated PhilGEPS Certificate of Registration and Membership”. PhilGEPS is the government’s procurement portal, and the Act makes it “the single electronic portal” for government buying.
Keep the certificate current. “The failure to update its Certificate with the current and updated supporting documents shall result in the automatic suspension of the bidder’s certificate.” The documents behind it are checked again at post-qualification, so an expired permit can sink a bid you have already won.
Does every government event go to public bidding?
No. The Act lists eleven modes of procurement, and competitive bidding is one of them. Two others matter for events.
| Mode | What the Act says | What it means for an agency |
| Competitive bidding | “open to participation by any eligible bidder”: publication, pre-bid conference, eligibility screening, bid opening, evaluation, post-qualification and award | The full process, with a published invitation and a deadline |
| Small value procurement | The agency asks for “at least three (3) price quotations”, for amounts up to P2,000,000 | A quotation, not a bid; one quotation is enough to proceed |
| Negotiated procurement | Allowed only in listed cases, including “commissioned work or services for creative design or a specific artist skill” | The agency picks the supplier, but it has to fit a listed case |
The agency can’t break a big event into small purchases to stay under a threshold. The Act prohibits “dividing or breaking up of contracts into smaller quantities and amounts, or dividing contract implementation into artificial phases or subcontracts” to get around its rules.
What does the invitation to bid tell you?
Everything you need to decide whether to bid. Invitations are published on the procuring entity’s website or social media, or in other channels the Government Procurement Policy Board allows. Each one states the approved budget for the contract (ABC), the deadlines, the pre-bid conference if there is one, the contract duration and “whether the contract will be awarded to the LCRB or the MEARB”.
The budget is a hard ceiling: “Bid prices that exceed this ceiling shall be disqualified outright from further participating in the bidding.” There is no floor: “There shall be no lower limit to the amount of the award.”
Does the lowest bid always win?
Not any more. A contract can go to the Lowest Calculated Responsive Bid (LCRB) or to the most economically advantageous responsive bid (MEARB). Under the MEARB, the committee scores quality and price together, and price carries “a minimum weight of fifteen percent (15%) up to a maximum of forty percent (40%)”.
The quality criteria read like an events brief. They include “Quality and technical merit, including technical competence and a credible track record”, “Aesthetic and functional design and characteristics”, “Approach and methodology”, and the “Organization, qualification, and experience of employees or staff assigned to perform the contract”. The committee has to finish evaluating within seven calendar days of the deadline, so the proposal has to make its case on paper.
What securities do you have to post?
Two. The bid security is “a guarantee that, after receipt of the Notice of Award, the winning bidder shall enter into contract with the Procuring Entity within the stipulated time and furnish the required performance security”. The performance security is posted “Prior to the signing of the contract” and “must remain effective until final acceptance”. The Act leaves the amounts and forms to its implementing rules.
Winning and then walking away costs money. If the winner fails to post the performance security, “the bid security shall be forfeited”, and the committee moves on to the next-ranked bidder.
What do you have to declare?
Two things about who you are. Every bid comes with a sworn affidavit that the bidder, its partners, board members and officers are not related to the head of the procuring entity, the committee or the end-user unit “by consanguinity or affinity up to the third civil degree”. And “The beneficial ownership information of the suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, contractors, or consultants shall be a requirement to participate in government procurement.”
What are the penalties?
Blacklisting: “one (1) year prohibition for the first offense, or two (2) years prohibition for the second offense”. The offences include “Submitting eligibility requirements and bids containing false information or falsified documents”, “Using the name of another for purposes of participating in any procurement activity”, and “Submission of beneficial ownership information containing false entries”.
The bid file, item by item
| Item | Why the Act asks for it |
| A valid and updated PhilGEPS Certificate of Registration and Membership | The committee checks eligibility through it |
| The documents behind the certificate, current | They are validated again at post-qualification |
| A bid priced at or under the ABC | Anything over the ceiling is disqualified outright |
| A quality proposal built to the published criteria | Under MEARB, quality carries 60% to 85% of the score |
| The bid security, in the form the bidding documents allow | It guarantees you will sign and post the performance security |
| The sworn affidavit of no relation | Failure to submit it disqualifies the bid |
| Beneficial ownership information | It is a requirement to participate |
Read the invitation first
The ABC, the award method and the quality criteria are all in the invitation to bid. If the budget can’t carry the event the agency describes, or the criteria don’t match what you do well, it is cheaper to pass than to post a bid security.
General information from Republic Act No. 12009. The amounts, forms and timelines sit in its implementing rules and in each set of bidding documents; read both before you bid.
Who should handle the bid?
The team that will run the event, with whoever keeps the company’s PhilGEPS documents current. When a government client briefs an events agency, ask early whether the job is going to competitive bidding, small value procurement or negotiated procurement, because each one runs on its own timeline. For private clients the brief looks different; our event RFP template covers that side. PUNX is an events agency in Makati: 50-plus people, founded 2023, running activations and events for GCash, Sun Life and PRU Life UK.
FAQ
Do you need PhilGEPS registration to bid for a government event?
Yes. Under Republic Act No. 12009 the Bids and Awards Committee requires a valid and updated PhilGEPS Certificate of Registration and Membership. If the supporting documents are not kept current, the certificate is automatically suspended.
Can a government agency hire an events company without public bidding?
Yes, in some cases. Competitive bidding is one of eleven modes. Small value procurement uses price quotations for amounts up to P2,000,000, and negotiated procurement is allowed in listed cases. The Act prohibits splitting a contract into smaller ones to get around its rules.
Does the lowest bid always win a government contract?
No. Under RA 12009 a contract for goods can go to the lowest calculated responsive bid or to the most economically advantageous responsive bid, which scores quality and price together. The invitation to bid says which one applies, and price carries 15% to 40% of the score.
What happens if the winning bidder doesn’t sign the contract?
The committee disqualifies that bidder and post-qualifies the next-ranked one. If the winner fails to post the performance security, its bid security is forfeited, and sanctions can follow.
Related
Events agency in the Philippines — what PUNX runs, and how
Event RFP template — what a private client sends before comparing replies
How to choose an events agency — the four questions that sort a shortlist
Bidding for a government event?
Send us the invitation to bid. We will read the budget, the award method and the timeline with you before anyone posts a bid security.
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