GUYANA’S mechanism for public procurement and financial accountability is ranked highly in the Caribbean, according to Minister within the Ministry of Finance, Bishop Juan Edghill.  Speaking on the National Communications Network’s ‘Political Scope’ programme on Saturday, the minister recalled that it was under former President Bharrat Jagdeo’s tenure that the Public Procurement Act, the only such legislation in the Region, was passed, and a National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) set up.

The process of public procurement is open to all, he explained. “Everything that needs to be done where the Government’s money, taxpayers’ money, or investment money needs to be spent is advertised openly…there is no back room wheeling and dealing like what obtained under the PNC administration in the past, when the permanent secretary or the head of an agency could call a friend and say, ‘I have a job to give to you’.”
The fact that all bids are opened in a public manner before the media and other stakeholders was also noted by the minister. The intent of Government, Minister Edghill said, is “to give comfort to all Guyanese that when your monies are being expended, everyone who’s a contractor, or supplier, you have a fair chance. There is openness, there is equal access to all; and when the jobs are offered, we are getting value for money”.
These contracts are supervised either by a consultant or company to ensure that the specifications are met, and the contract executed to stated requirements. All prospective bidders must be compliant with the Guyana Revenue Authority and the National Insurance Scheme, or lapses in these areas would be detrimental to the chances of anyone bidding, the minister said. He noted that “this has happened over and over again”.
The role of Cabinet was examined by the minister who reiterated that if Government is to be accountable to the people for spending tax dollars, it must have an oversight role, for if something goes wrong, it is the Government that gets the blame.
He praised the evaluators and other stakeholders such as Regional Executive Officers, engineers, and technical staffers, for having done a tremendous job. Cabinet has, as a result, had very few objections to contracts tendered.
POLITICS NOT PART OF PROCUREMENT

Claims of discrimination were dismissed by the minister who said that “politics must be taken out of procurement”. He referred to the bidding by Fedders Lloyd which submitted two prices for the Specialty Hospital. He noted that the company’s legal counsel, Alliance For Change (AFC) Executive Khemraj Ramjattan took the Government to task when his client didn’t get the winning bid, which was won by Surendra Engineering.
“The AFC must be judged by the people of Guyana for that act. You are the lawyer for a company that lost a bid, and you’re destroying an entire project and prospect of building a specialty hospital in Guyana because your client didn’t get the job. No politician should be engaged in such a lobby.”
Government later moved to suspend the contract which was as a result of due diligence and the efforts to put the country first, the minister said. He opined that Government should be commended for the steps taken and the fact that upon taking the company to court, won its multi-million US dollar case for compensation.
REDRESS

In terms of contractors who wish to be reconsidered for a contract, there is course for redress. It was noted by the minister that an appeal can be made to the bid protest committee, “but before that, he/she can write to the procuring entity and ask for a review. It is during that review, if something would have gone wrong, it can be corrected. If after doing so the bidder is not satisfied, he/she can approach the tender board with a protest. The tender board would have to put together a three-person tender board bid protesting committee; one will be named by the attorney general, one by the finance minister and the tender board names the other”.
There is a stipulated period of time in which this review must be completed. A report has to be given, and while the committee is conducting its work, the procuring entity cannot award the contract.  Everything is on pause until the committee, which has a stipulated time to complete its work, assesses the complaint. Minister Edghill explained that the contract will either stand or be awarded to another party.
Minister Edghill noted that as Government continues its efforts to make the process even more transparent, events such as the Procurement Symposium will be held to bring more information to potential contractors. “The fact that people are engaging is a clear fact that the rhetoric out there in the Opposition camp, using this as a political talking point, is not gaining traction, because the small man, small company, small business, medium business, large business, everybody is having an equal opportunity of getting a chance of benefitting and engaging as a result of public procurement”. (GINA)