$175,000 computer server package acquired by mayor flagged as suspicious due to an apparent 1,300% markup

A recently elected mayor has brought to light a costly computer systems deal, which was signed, sealed, and delivered by their predecessor. On her Facebook page, Mayor Sally A. Lopez shares photos and documents confirming that her predecessor acquired a “10 million System Server Package.” Assuming we are talking Philippine pesos, that’s equivalent to about USD $175,000. However, the 16 systems look bargain-basement – at best – being based on old Intel 11th Generation processors, with generic case and power choices. According to our calculations, someone appears to have enjoyed a 1,300% markup.

(Image credit: Mayor Sally A. Lopez )

(Image credit: Mayor Sally A. Lopez )

The implications of the new mayor's post seem pretty straightforward. Perhaps they were elected on a platform of cleaning up corruption. Signing off on a computer server deal for significantly more than the expected cost indicates that the previous mayor’s team was either uninformed or perhaps shared in some part of the profits. Neither conclusion is reasonable.

Lopez had earlier shared a post by politics-centric Ukc Ibrahim. That post claimed that the new mayor questioned the old mayor about the 10 million System Server Package purchase. "The price is really high," Lopez is quoted as saying. "And it hasn't even been tested to see if it works or not, but Former Mayor Bajada paid for it right away." (machine translation).

Unfortunately, this Ukc Ibrahim seems to have mistakenly called out the prior mayor, indicating that the huge expenditure was for a single PC. Some social media and tech channels are still spreading this mistake.

We’re glad to see Lopez clear up the single PC vs 16 PCs error now, though she could have let the dirt on her predecessor stand.

Our calculations

We performed some quick calculations to estimate the cost of a 16-computer package with similar components (based on Intel Core i7-11700 CPU, 16GB RAM, and 512GB SSD key specs). We scoured Newegg for these and the other necessary hardware components to create a basic setup. Additionally, we note that the ‘package’ included items such as 16 monitors, sets of input peripherals, and UPS systems. There wasn’t any mention of software.

• Newegg U.S. prices
• $320 (CPU) + $100 (mobo) + $40 (RAM) + $40 (storage) + $70 (PSU) + $40 (case) + $60 (UPS) + $100 (monitor) + $25 (keyboard/mouse set) = $775
• For sixteen such systems, we come to a $12,400 total.

There’s a lot of room for error in our math, and indications suggest that some of these PCs may have come with HDDs, as well as (or instead of) SSDs. There’s also the question of software. But there’s also a very long way to go to reach the equivalent of $175,000. We cannot find anything in the pictures or documents to justify the total price being multiplied by 14.

Intel’s 11th Generation processors for desktop PCs debuted in 2021, yet samples like the Core i7-11700, which appear to be what the sixteen PCs are spec'd with, seem to be overpriced in our U.S.-based Newegg findings. They’re even costlier than Intel's i7-12700 CPUs for some reason. We’d expect the PC systems supplier in the Philippines to have steered customers towards the Core i7-11700 CPUs, as they were a bargain or surplus processor at the time.

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