{"id":27842,"date":"2023-05-11T23:37:21","date_gmt":"2023-05-12T04:37:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev?p=27842"},"modified":"2023-05-11T17:38:08","modified_gmt":"2023-05-11T22:38:08","slug":"the-public-procurement-commission-is-comatose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/the-public-procurement-commission-is-comatose\/","title":{"rendered":"The Public Procurement Commission is comatose"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Guyana<\/p>\n<p>SN article on the progress of the Bamia Primary School highlights the challenges that exist when previously untested contractors are awarded contracts for major infrastructure projects. Based on public information, this contract was awarded to a company that was established only three (3) months before the award, bringing into question if the company would have met the technical criteria as set out in NPTAB\u2019s Standard Bidding Documents.<\/p>\n<p>Almost three months ago, based on the uncertainty surrounding this contract award, I would have lodged several complaints with the Public Procurement Commission, requesting investigations to be conducted into the award of several contracts, including the Bamia Primary School. The Public Procurement Commission (PPC) is the constitutional body tasked with investigating complaints from the public on alleged procurement breaches \u2013 but to date, I have not been afforded the courtesy of an acknowledgement of receipt of my complaint.<\/p>\n<p>Unofficial information received states that the current Commission is of the opinion that any complaints that arose before their establishment (July 1, 2022) cannot be investigated \u2013 in the Commission\u2019s opinion, they are only empowered to investigate procurement allegations committed after this date.<\/p>\n<p>The Commission sought internal legal advice, which contradicted their position, but clearly dissatisfied, additional external legal advice is being sought to support their position that only procurement breaches which occurred post July 1, 2022, can be investigated. The external legal counsel shortlisted would be of little surprise to the public and until such a decision is completed, the Commission\u2019s work will be in limbo.<\/p>\n<p>An even more bizarre position adopted by the current Commission is that no person other than a supplier or contractor can lodge complaints to or even request the Commission to conduct investigations into alleged breaches of a contract. In other words, the members of the public or the taxpayers cannot request investigations by the Commission unless they were an interested party to that specific contract. This position departs from the work of the previous Commission, which conducted several investigations arising from complaints submitted by the public, most famous of these being the investigation into the award of the feasibility studies for the proposed New Demerara Harbor Bridge.<\/p>\n<p>Further, unofficial information indicated that the internal legal opinion also contradicted this position, and as before, the Commission, being dissatisfied with this opinion has opted for external legal advice.<\/p>\n<p>The current PPC was established on July 1, 2022, after receiving full support by all Members of Parliament on both sides of the House. The Government has boasted that the re-establishment of the PPC, clearly demonstrates their commitment to transparency and accountability. However, since its 2022 establishment, this PPC has only concentrated on hiring (and firing) of staff, Christmas and New Year\u2019s parties, Commissioners\u2019 entitlement to duty free vehicles, and in fact, the two most pressing matters currently engaging the Commission, are the procurement of staff uniforms and securing a more comfortable office building.<\/p>\n<p>The PPC, like the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) which has cancelled its next scheduled meeting on April 17, 2023, due to \u2018unavailability of most members\u201d \u2013has fallen victim to the Government\u2019s continued position of preaching accountability, while in practice doing their utmost to stall efforts to uproot corrupt practices.<\/p>\n<p>Unsurprisingly, this fits well into the Government\u2019s competence of unsurpassed, beguiling Public Relations and publicity while reminding us of the adage that says \u201cEmpty barrels make the most noise\u201d. \u00a0Guyanese need to look past the glitz and glamour of photos and press conferences and remember that \u201cActions speak louder than words\u201d and then ask themselves, what have the actions of this Government meant for you, your friends and family??<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaieteurnewsonline.com\/2023\/04\/14\/the-public-procurement-commission-is-comatose\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">more<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>image: pexels-shreeneet-rathi<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Guyana SN article on the progress of the Bamia Primary School highlights the challenges that exist when previously untested contractors are awarded contracts for major infrastructure projects. Based on public&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1091,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6u9Qa-7f4","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":24581,"url":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/afc-calls-on-public-procurement-commission-to-probe-large-contracts-issued-by-tender-board\/","url_meta":{"origin":27842,"position":0},"title":"AFC calls on Public Procurement Commission to probe large contracts issued by Tender Board","author":"Mayra Bonilla Lopez","date":"October 13, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Guyana \u00a0 \u201cThe AFC calls on the Public Procurement Commission to conduct a full investigation into the operations of the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board. Special attention should be paid to the bid evaluation and contract award process,\u201d MP Patterson urged during an AFC press conference on Friday. Flagging\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/pexels-andrea-piacquadio-3760067-scaled-e1665684890313.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/pexels-andrea-piacquadio-3760067-scaled-e1665684890313.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/pexels-andrea-piacquadio-3760067-scaled-e1665684890313.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/pexels-andrea-piacquadio-3760067-scaled-e1665684890313.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":29494,"url":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/procurement-body-invites-complaints-on-award-of-govt-contracts\/","url_meta":{"origin":27842,"position":1},"title":"Procurement body invites complaints on award of gov\u2019t contracts","author":"Mayra Bonilla Lopez","date":"August 17, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Guyana Amid criticisms of it,\u00a0 the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) is inviting persons aggrieved over the award of\u00a0 any government contract to lodge a formal complaint so as to trigger an administrative review. \u201cDissatisfied with the rejection of your bid? Lodge a complaint for an administrative review,\u201d a notice in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5673488-scaled-e1692322490716.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5673488-scaled-e1692322490716.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5673488-scaled-e1692322490716.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5673488-scaled-e1692322490716.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":37184,"url":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/the-dereliction-of-the-public-procurement-commission\/","url_meta":{"origin":27842,"position":2},"title":"The dereliction of the Public Procurement Commission","author":"Mayra Bonilla Lopez","date":"November 14, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Guyana \u00a0 Can it possibly be the case that the historic constitutional reforms of over two decades ago conceived of a Public Procurement Commission (PPC) that would be toothless? Is it conceivable that upon examining a hopelessly flawed tender that the PPC would do nothing about an improperly awarded contract\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Contract-agreement-signature-Pixabay-Pexels.jpeg?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Contract-agreement-signature-Pixabay-Pexels.jpeg?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Contract-agreement-signature-Pixabay-Pexels.jpeg?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Contract-agreement-signature-Pixabay-Pexels.jpeg?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":37621,"url":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/public-procurement-commission-finds-several-breaches-in-award-of-870m-pump-station-contract-to-tepui-company\/","url_meta":{"origin":27842,"position":3},"title":"Public Procurement Commission finds several breaches in award of $870M pump station contract to Tepui Company","author":"Mayra Bonilla Lopez","date":"December 15, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Guyana The Public Procurement Commission (PPC) has found that there were several breaches in the issuance of an $870 Million pump station contract to Tepui Incorporated, which is a recently established company that is managed by Social Media talk show host, Mikhail Rodrigues aka \u201cThe Guyanese Critic\u201d. However, the Commission\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/pexels-grzegorz-lewandowski-380083092-29707905-scaled-e1734121806212.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/pexels-grzegorz-lewandowski-380083092-29707905-scaled-e1734121806212.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/pexels-grzegorz-lewandowski-380083092-29707905-scaled-e1734121806212.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/pexels-grzegorz-lewandowski-380083092-29707905-scaled-e1734121806212.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16753,"url":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/procurement-commission-could-be-seriously-affected-by-pac-gridlock\/","url_meta":{"origin":27842,"position":4},"title":"Procurement commission could be seriously affected by PAC gridlock","author":"Mayra Bonilla Lopez","date":"May 27, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"The reluctance of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chair, Mr David Patterson, to step down from that position, or end the gridlock, is putting at risk the continued employment of staff at the PPC (Public Procurement Commission) whose contracts are coming to an end. The staff cannot be on the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News\/Developments&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News\/Developments","link":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/category\/newsdevelopments\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5668473-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5668473-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5668473-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5668473-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/pexels-sora-shimazaki-5668473-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":25994,"url":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/integrity-commission-wants-registry-that-will-expose-negligent-contractors\/","url_meta":{"origin":27842,"position":5},"title":"Integrity Commission wants registry that will expose negligent contractors","author":"Michele Marius","date":"January 19, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Jamaica THE Integrity Commission (IC) is urging the Government to implement a public contract management system or registry that will essentially put contractors who fall down on their obligations on blast. The recommendation comes against the background of the findings of a special investigation which the commission conducted in January\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Corruption-Pix4Free.jpg?fit=1024%2C682&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Corruption-Pix4Free.jpg?fit=1024%2C682&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Corruption-Pix4Free.jpg?fit=1024%2C682&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Corruption-Pix4Free.jpg?fit=1024%2C682&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1091"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27842"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27842\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27859,"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27842\/revisions\/27859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projectcalls.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}