The motions for reconsideration of Sear Telecommunications Inc and Philippine Telegraph and Telephone Co. were rejected by the selection committee of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) on Tuesday.

The agency’s selection committee denied the motions for reconsideration of Sear Telecommunications Inc. and Philippine Telegraph and Telephone Corp. due to submitting “incomplete” and “non-compliant” bids.

PT&T failed to submit a certification of technical capability from the NTC, while Sear Telecom of former Ilocos Sur Governor Chavit Singson was disqualified for not submitting the “participation security” of P700 million.

The NTC's selection committee said PT&T and Sear can file an appeal to the commission en banc until Thursday.

PT&T said it received Monday night the decision of the selection committee of NTC rejecting its motion for reconsideration.

“The PT&T management and its legal team are reviewing the Selection Committee's denial of the Motion for Reconsideration to determine the next course of action that the company will take,” the company said.

In a separate statement, Sear insisted that Mindanao Islamic Telephone Co. Inc. (Mislatel) “violated” the NTC selection committee rules when it partnered with Udenna/Chelsea Logistics/China Telecom, and participated in the bidding, without disclosing a legally binding undertaking that prevents it from doing so.

Last week, the NTC's selection committee declared Mislatel Consortium, a joint venture of Dennis Uy’s Udenna Corp., its subsidiary Chelsea Logistics Holdings Corp., Chinese state-owned China Telecommunications Corp. as the new major player.

Mislatel committed to invest P257 billion over a five-year period, with P150 billion committed to its first year of operations.

In terms of internet speed, the group committed to provide 27 megabits per second (mbps) in its first year, and 55 mbps in five years. DMS