WAR On DAPATism

Today I declare a WAR on DAPAT (www.dapat.com). Three or four months ago, we participated and helped DAPAT to prepare proposals / tender documents for a government project (SMS Gateway & Applications) under MAMPU (www.mampu.gov.my). Then, they won the contract and threw a big party without inviting us. I only knew about this party from one of my advisors. But, we’re cool with it. Then, they excitingly invited us for a meeting to discuss on how they should go about the project – the architecture, implementation, maintenance etc. Well, fine, being a good provider, we provided them with everything. And after all that, finally, they ditched us – telling us (after so many phone calls & SMS went unanswered for two or three days) that the price that we quoted is too expensive. They’re thinking about hiring people and doing it themselves.

If our price were too high (which I do not think so for some 50 customized solutions to be implemented at 50 government agencies), they could at least come back to us and say so, and negotiate. It’s not like the price is fixed for god’s sake. But, no, they are arrogant and they simply forget everything that we’ve done for them. I say, I don’t think they’d manage to successfully complete the tender document without us.

So, I believe that I have the right to declare a war on them, a war on these greedy bastards with UMNO attitudes – seduced us, fucked and impregnated us and then ditched and left us by the road-side. “Hey, you’re good to fuck, but I won’t spend a single cent on you”. Excuse me, even prostitutes get paid. So, next time, I assure you, we’ll act like one. Show us your money before you fuck us. Oh, and please leave the money on the desk immediately after, and not 14 days or 30 days after.

Okay, let’s do the simple math. Let’s say you really want to do it yourself by hiring “more” people. That’s your exact words. Let’s just say, for argument’s sake, you hire 3 programmers – that’s the minimum number you need to finish the job on time. One experienced programmer to lead the team would cost you around RM 6,000 per month. So, plus the EPF etc, let’s just multiply that figure with 125% (25% being the salary burden, claims, medical etc) and you’ll get RM 7,500 per month. The others could be intermediate programmers with 2 to 3-year experience which would cost you around RM 3,000 per month. Again, multiply that figure with 125% and you’ll get RM 3,750 per month per person. So, the cost of two programmers sums up to RM 7,500. Now, the total will be: RM 7,500 + RM 7,500 = RM 15,000 per month. The project duration is 12 months, so we’ll get: RM 15,000 per month x 12 months = RM 180,000.

Bear in mind that this is only a rough estimate. Normally, the cost would be slightly higher, especially if you hire “more” people.

If they come back to us and negotiate for RM 150,000 or so, I would gladly start the development immediately. Oh, I forgot to mention that they have to come up with 50 standard applications (without customizations) by June 24, 2008, which is a month from now.

In any event, I wish them luck and go fuck yourself.