PRESIDENT Donald Ramotar on Friday announced that his government will take a “no-nonsense” stance against errant contractors who usually take very long periods to complete projects.
Speaking at a procurement conference at the Guyana International Conference Centre yesterday Ramotar said accountability and transparency is the focus of his government, since value for money is a high priority
He also warned that possibility of blacklisting contractors, engineers and consultants who constantly charge exorbitant monies as against the contractual agreement that is being examined.
“I am asking the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Attorney General to re-examine these laws, because I don’t think tax payers should be paying for these all the time, I think we must put in the laws and I have instructed them already that we must implement clauses in our contract for penalties where people sign contracts and without any valid reason cannot complete their contracts” Ramotar told participants
The symposium is aimed at strengthening and improving the procurement processes designed by the government and according to Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh, his ministry will remain vigilant to ensure tax payers dollars are utilized efficiently.
” An accountable and transparent system, one that can withstand scrutiny and a system that promotes competition and value for money for government and these are objectives that we will not be compromising” Dr Singh said.
He said government has endeavored to have a public procurement system that is consistent with the national objective in particular, contributing to accountable and transparent outcomes.
The symposium commenced on August 2 and participants were informed of the procurement process as enshrined in the act. (Inews)