Health ministry defends emergency CRH contract; bypass of competitive process, late PPC engagement raise concerns
Jamaica
The Cabinet last year approved a $15-billion emergency contract to a Chinese firm for the Cornwall Regional Hospital (CRH) rehabilitation project despite Jamaica’s chief procurement agency saying the health ministry led an “irregular” process.
But the ministry has strongly rejected the Public Procurement Commission’s (PPC) assertion, insisting that the contract to ZDA Construction Limited was awarded in accordance with the country’s procurement laws and guidelines.
The concerns link the ministry allegedly bypassing the PPC to get Cabinet’s approval to enter into direct contracting. That method meant that the multibillion-dollar contract was not subject to a competitive process.
There are also questions of why the ministry later asked the PPC for its endorsement on a process already approved by the Cabinet, and why the Cabinet did not get the PPC’s position first, as it did in many previous cases.
It is the latest development in the saga of the restoration of the primary healthcare facility in western Jamaica. It started in 2016 with concerns about noxious fumes, followed by the relocation of services, shifting deadlines, ballooning budgets, and problems with contractors.
Image: medical-appointment