A billion-dollar catering contract approved by Cabinet is now the subject of an official complaint before the Integrity Commission.<\/p>\n
Sunday Gleaner<\/b>\u00a0investigations have revealed that Elegant Weddings Event Planning & Catering Limited has reported the matter to the Greg Christie-led anti-corruption watchdog amid allegations that a key government official exerted undue influence in the contract-award process.<\/p>\n
However, when contacted yesterday, the official in question, whom\u00a0The Sunday Gleaner<\/b>\u00a0has decided not to identify at this time, said he had no comment to make at this stage.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, the new food service provider, Patsy Lyn Limited, is expected to take over from the St Andrew-based Elegant, whose agreement with the South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA) ends next month. SERHA is the government authority that runs the public health facilities in St Catherine, Kingston, St Andrew and St Thomas.<\/p>\n
Neville Lyn, who is listed as a company director for Patsy, confirmed yesterday that his Kingston-based entity was this year awarded the contract, which is yet to be signed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a very touchy, touchy situation,\u201d he added, while declining to explain further over the phone.<\/p>\n
The Sunday Gleaner<\/b>\u00a0has obtained several documents, including a June 2, 2020 letter from Dwayne Bailey, SERHA\u2019s senior director for public procurement, who advised the current providers that the contract would not be extended after July 2.<\/p>\n
Two days later, Bailey wrote again to Elegant, but this time indicating that \u201cwe have concluded our tender process for dietary services\u201d at the Kingston Public and Victoria Jubilee hospitals, and that the contract would not be extended beyond July 4, 2020.<\/p>\n
The two letters did not include any reasons for the non-extension, and although it\u2019s not clear when the original contract was signed, documents suggest the multimillion-dollar arrangement was extended in January 2018.<\/p>\n
When\u00a0The Sunday Gleaner<\/b>\u00a0contacted the owner of Elegant, she declined to speak on the matter and pleaded that her name not be included in the article out of fear for her life.<\/p>\n
The Sunday Gleaner<\/b>, however, has found that Elegant\u2019s complaint was made to the Integrity Commission in a letter dated June 8.<\/p>\n
It alleged that the $1.2-billion contract was not put through a competitive bidding process, that a single-source procurement method, in which the supplier is selected by the entity needing the services, was used, and that a senior government official was influential in the contract-award process.<\/p>\n
Christie, the Integrity Commission\u2019s executive director, to whom the letter was addressed, responded on June 15, acknowledging the complaint, and said that it had been referred to the information and complaints division for review.<\/p>\n
Contacted Friday, Christie declined to comment,\u00a0pointing to the secrecy law which blocks the commission from disclosing to taxpayers any details about investigations before a report is tabled before Parliament.<\/p>\n
Government procurement rules dictate that contracts valued in excess of $150 million be open to local or international bidding, advertising in domestic and global media, and require approval from the head of the procuring entity before endorsement by the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) and final approval from Cabinet.<\/p>\n
Section 25 of the public procurement law outlines that an entity may use single-source procurement under five scenarios, three of which include where the goods, works or services are available from a particular supplier, registered or not; the situation is an emergency; or in the interest of national security.<\/p>\n
The procuring entity must also invite a proposal or price quotation from the supplier and engage in negotiations unless it is not feasible.<\/p>\n
The Sunday Gleaner<\/b>\u00a0has been unable to ascertain a full justification for the approach taken by SERHA, although a source indicated that over the years, several tenders received were just \u201cunsuitable\u201d and there was an urgency to end the existing arrangement.<\/p>\n
Repeated efforts to contact the chairman of SERHA, attorney-at-law Wentworth Charles, were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Bailey, SERHA\u2019s head of procurement, has insisted that the procurement process was above board.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no breach of any of the procedures in engaging Patsy Lyn,\u201d he said, noting that SERHA has not received any communication from the Integrity Commission suggesting a probe is under way.<\/p>\n
Citing legal restrictions on disclosing reasons for using single-sourcing, Bailey explained that SERHA received permission from the PPC to use that method of contracting because previous public tenders were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n