Guyana
The opposition APNU+AFC yesterday called for a probe of the national tender board and the procurement system in the wake of the scandalous award of the Belle Vue Pump Station contract to Tepui Inc.
In a statement, it said that the findings of the Public Procurement Com-mission (PPC) on the Tepui contract for the construction of the Belle Vue pump station have outraged Guyanese across the political spectrum.
“We, in the Opposition, firmly believe that the Tepui contract scandal is only the tip of a large iceberg. Indeed, NPTAB was barefaced enough to inform the PPC that it awarded similar pump station contracts to others who also did not have the experience and prerequisites. We are convinced that breaches of the procurement laws and the award of contracts to the friends, families and favorites of the PPP government occur regularly and are in the tens of billions of dollars.
“We, therefore, believe that calls for only a criminal investigation of the Evaluation Committee for the Tepui contract or the revocation of the contract fail to recognise the magnitude of the mismanagement, corruption, and political interference in the contract award system under the PPP. Nothing short of radical overhaul and total cleansing is needed. Guyanese must note that the government’s entire capital budget is processed through the public procurement system. We are dealing with hundreds of billions of dollars annually. In 2023, the capital budget was G$388B. In 2024, it is a galloping $666B, approximately 58% of the entire national budget”, the opposition said.
It noted that the award of government contracts was a “Herdmanston issue.” – meaning that in the aftermath of the 1997 election and public protests, the award of contracts was explicitly identified by all stakeholders as a matter of central importance for race relations, social justice, and equal opportunity in Guyana.
It added that the 1999 Constitution Reform Com-mission (CRC) agreed, therefore, to establish the Public Procurement Com-mission as a body with constitutional powers to address this national problem.
The opposition charged that the PPP/C, during its previous term in office, thwarted both the establishment and the functioning of the procurement commission.
“Given the PPP’s track record, it is no wonder that the government’s only response on the Tepui contact scandal was to say, through its Minister for Finance, that it wishes “to assure the Guyanese public that this PPP/C government, led by His Excellency President Dr. Irfaan Ali, remains firmly and unwaveringly committed to good governance and accountability, including through the maintenance and preservation of public bodies that can withstand scrutiny.” Sheer platitudes! Sheer hypo-crisy! The government evidently regards Guyanese as either blind or fools”, the opposition thundered.
Stating that the Tepui contract award and the other such dubious awards are merely the tip of the iceberg, the opposition said that it was calling for:
1. A full and thorough investigation of NPTAB and the public procurement system.
2. The enactment of legislation to give the PPC clear-cut powers to revoke contracts and impose penalties whenever breaches, non-compliance, and fraud are discovered.
3. The urgent drafting and enforcement of regulations by the PPC using its powers under the current procurement act.
4. The termination of the Tepui contract in keeping with the position of former Public Procurement Commission Chair Carol Corbin’s position. The opposition reported her as saying that the Commis-sion should “recommend” to the procuring entity that they terminate this contract.
“What we want to emphasize, in closing, is that what we are facing with the PPP is a total lack of political will to stamp out corruption and cronyism. They have deliberately decided not to enforce the law, to empower only a narrow section of elite society, and as a result even the changes we recommend must be met with political change. Other-wise, we will continue to hear idle talk and no action. Guyanese must use their vote to ensure the PPP is prevented from further undermining our government and its institutions”, the opposition said.
More than six months after a complaint was lodged by APNU+AFC MP David Patterson about a pump station contract award to Tepui Inc, the procurement commission found major breaches in the evaluation process but said it could do nothing about it as a contract has already been concluded.
The PPC on April 16 issued a summary of findings since Patterson was not an aggrieved party and only entitled to recommendations on the way forward.
The PPC said “…on the entry into a contract, privity of contract issues arise. There is nothing within the statutory framework which permits the commission to revoke, rescind, recall and or in any way alter, suspend or stop the contract once entered”.
The award of the $865m Belle Vue Pump Station to Tepui Inc had raised questions from the outset as its key principal Mikhail Rodrigues was not involved in construction but was known to be a confidant of Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo and with ready access to government.
In its 35-page summary, the PPC elicited answers from the NPTAB – whose evaluation committee made the choice of Tepui – and the procuring agency, the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA). Not only were both tardy in answering the PPC, they only provided some of the documents requested.
Tepui was required to have had the experience of having completed one project of a similar nature within the past five years. Similar projects “shall include pump stations, sluices and drainage structures”. Having been incorporated less than a year before, Tepui did not have these qualifications, yet the evaluation committee of the NPTAB found its bid to be responsive.
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Trinidad and Tobago
I refer to press reports that, “State-owned development company Nidco, the project manager, acted as just a ‘rubber stamp’.” This was reportedly said by Renuka Sagramsingh-Sooklal, member of the Joint Select Committee on Land and Physical Infrastructure at the sitting earlier in the week of the JSC which is conducting an enquiry into the Point Fortin contract.
The Joint Council for the Construction Industry (JCC) understands that the alleged wastage of public funds occurred before the new procurement legislation was enacted and operationalised in April 2023 and therefore the alleged “enablers of the associated corruption and wastage” cannot be penalised under these present laws.
While that may be the case, the JSC should seek to at least name and shame the relevant people for this travesty. Imagine that the OAS was paid US$150m or 20 per cent of the contract sum, as an advance payment, when the tender was based on ten per cent?
We would like to think that this cannot happen today as complaints can be filed under Section 41 of Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Property Act of 2015 to The Regulator of the Office of the Procurement Regulation (OPR). In other words,the state entity, NIDCO in this case cannot be directed or pressured by powerful enablers, without these transgressions coming to light via the OPR.
The JCC cautions the public that too much time has elapsed since the annual report from The OPR was due at the end of 2023 and it yet to be delivered to the House of Representatives.
The impact of the new procurement laws is heavily reliant on this OPR annual report, which will provide transparent information to the public for the first time in the history of this country of exactly how much public money has been spent; how is spending these monies and who are the contractors and service providers.
We cannot underscore the vital importance of this information nor the following information that the OPR has to include in the report:
(i) the number of procurement contracts awarded;
(ii) the number of procurement contracts varied;
(iii) the quantum of those variances;
(iv) the number of unfulfilled procurement contracts an the quantum of cost incurred;
(v) with respect to the procurement for a project, a brief description, the awardee, the value, the scope of works and the expected deliverables of the project; and
(vi) lessons learnt as a consequence of the management of procurement contracts;
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Saint Lucia
- ST. LUCIA-TRADE-St. Lucia signals intention to join PJCPP
St. Lucia has signalled its interest in signing the protocol governing public procurement in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Single Market and Economy (CSME).
The CSME allows for the free movement of services, goods, skills and labour across the majority of the 15-member regional integration movement.
Earlier this month, Castries hosted the second meeting of the CARICOM Permanent Joint Council on Public Procurement (PJCPP) and a statement posted on the St. Lucia government website Monday, said while the island “has not yet signed the protocol, it participated as an observer during the meeting, signaling its interest and commitment to the deliberations”.
Director of the Barbados-based CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) Unit, Titus Preville, a former senior St. Lucia public servant, during the meeting highlighted the significance of the PJCPP, noting that it would focus on adopting its rules of procedure. Additionally, the meeting aimed to approve proposals encompassing rules, guidelines, norms, and standards outlined in the protocol for administering public procurement.
Furthermore, the PJCPP intended to scrutinize its work programme for the period spanning 2024 to 2026, along with proposals for integrating E-Procurement into the Community Public Procurement Notice Board.
Preville said at the moment seven member states Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Suriname have signed the protocol on public procurement and the declaration to provisionally apply the protocol since it was approved by the Conference of Heads of Government in St. Kitts and Nevis in 2019.
“Of the seven Barbados and Belize have moved to ratify the protocol. In keeping therefore with article 36 of the protocol, once at least five member states have signed the protocol and the declaration to provisionally apply the protocol, the protocol is determined to be provisionally applied among these parties.
As a consequence of that provisional application of the protocol, under article 30 of the protocol the permanent joint council can be established,” he added.
Permanent Secretary in the Department of Finance, Francis Fontenelle, acknowledged that while St. Lucia has not yet signed the protocol, the country has made significant strides in modernizing its procurement reform processes.
He said the island has introduced a new Public Procurement Act and accompanying regulations, as well as standardized tender documents to streamline compliance. Additionally, an E-Procurement Platform has been implemented to enhance accessibility, record-keeping, and reporting, aligning with parallel efforts within the CSME.
“We are very grateful that we are afforded observer status to the functioning of the Permanent Joint Council. This affords us insight into the direction in which the concept of regionally integrated public procurement is headed. We wish to recognize the contributions made by the CARICOM Secretariat and by the CSME Unit to the development of public procurement in the region.”
The Permanent Joint Council, consisting of senior trade and public procurement specialists from member states, is tasked with implementing the provisions outlined in the community protocol on public procurement.
This council holds the responsibility for overseeing the execution of the protocol’s mandates and regularly reports to the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) on the protocol’s performance.
“Now is the time for the remaining CARICOM, CSME member states to sign the protocol and be part of the design of the framework of what will govern the parties to the protocol in the future,” said Preville.
Fontenelle said St. Lucia will continue to pursue some internal steps to ensure that the policies are “sufficiently understood and accepted prior to assimilation into our policy framework.
“In essence, we want all concerned parties to be comfortable that this is acceptable to us and that it is not being adopted solely to meet an external requirement,” Fontenelle said.
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Jamaica
Trelawny Northern MP says procurement process stalling rehabilitative works
TOVA HAMILTON, member of parliament for Trelawny Northern, is appealing for her constituents’ patience as she battles with the lengthy procurement process to address deteriorated roadways in her constituency.
Hamilton, while responding to queries from The Gleaner, shared that she has been pushing for the commencement of major road rehabilitation projects in the constituency. However, she further explained that with the lengthy procurement process in place by the Government, these projects are still in the pipeline as the National Works Agency (NWA) is yet to award the contracts.
“Hopefully, they can be a little patient with me because I have to go through processes just the same and it’s not as though I can just execute a project on my own. I don’t get the resources to do it, so I have to go to the agencies that have the resources.”
According to Hamilton, motorists traversing the Duncans to Clark’s Town main road should expect better road conditions once the proposed project is completed. She told The Gleaner that approximately $20 million has been allocated for the project and the procurement process was initiated last year.
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Guyana
Chairman of the NPTAB, Tarachand Balgobind said on Wednesday that he has acknowledged the criticisms of the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) in its summary of findings regarding the tender board’s timely submission of documents and is working to acquire a robust “electronic records” management system.
As in the case of the awarded $865 million contract for the pump station at Belle Vue (West Coast Demerara) to inexperienced company Tepui Group Inc. R Kissoon complained to the PPC on January 24, 2023 that its bids for the maintenance and servicing of drainage and irrigation pumps were unsuccessful even though they were the lowest for two lots and met all of the requirements. The NPTAB did not supply documents as requested or did so very late.
Balgobind when contacted by Stabroek News said the NPTAB is working with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to procure an advanced and reliable electronic system where information can be disseminated expeditiously.
He said the NPTAB welcomed the PPC’s review of the awarding of a contract for the construction of the pump station at Belle Vue, West Bank Demerara, Region 3, and the report issued on 16th April 2024.
The Chairman referred this newspaper to a statement following the release of the PPC’s Summary of Findings on the award of a pump station contract to Tepui Inc
The NPTAB remains fully committed to working closely with its evaluation committees to ensure scrutiny of bids and strict adherence to the evaluation criteria. Moreover, the NPTAB reiterates the importance of procurement entities drafting evaluation criteria that clearly outline all relevant issues for evaluators to analyze and make recommendations”, the release said.
“NPTAB also notes the need to eliminate inconsistencies, where they exist, in the instructions to bidders. This recommendation is aligned with ongoing reforms being undertaken currently and will be implemented through
collaboration with the PPC to strengthen bidding documents, particularly when tenders are advertised in lots. Additionally, the NPTAB has commenced two consultancies to strengthen records management and develop a public procurement management system. Both will introduce information technology solutions to current processes and procedures and pave the way for a robust e-procurement system”, the statement said.
On Wednesday this newspaper reported that it took eight months for the PPC to throw out a complaint by R Kissoon Contracting Services over a bid for D&I pumps but more irregularities have surfaced in the tendering system including errors by the evaluation committee and the signing of the disputed contract on January 1st 2023, a national holiday.
The PPC discovered based on the documents submitted to it that the Evaluation Committee of the NPTAB said R Kissoon was non-responsive on three of the criteria and its bids were therefore thrown out. However, the PPC found that R Kissoon could possibly only have been deemed non responsive in relation to one guideline and had actually complied with the other two.
This discovery will raise further questions about the arbitrary conduct of the evaluation committees of the NPTAB and how certain contractors could be favoured over others. Despite having failed several guidelines, including the requirement to have previously built a pump station, the evaluation committee admitted the bid of Tepui Inc as responsive. Tepui was later awarded the contract and this has triggered a major controversy.
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