A number of controversies that occurred in 2019 under the Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) regional administration, were on Monday highlighted before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), including the fact that one contractor received 89 per cent of drainage and irrigation contracts for that year through restricted tendering.
During the PAC sitting, the committee interrogated officials from Region Five, including the current and former Regional Executive Officers, Genevieve Blackman and Ovid Morrison, respectively.
One case in particular attracted much attention. The Audit Office had found that out of $101.8 million that was spent on Drainage and Irrigation, 15 contracts totalling $90.5 million or 89 per cent of the total expenditure, were awarded via restricted tendering to one contractor.
“Further, only three contractors were invited to bid for these jobs. Similarly; in 2018, forty contracts totalling $90.178M or 85.8% for drainage and irrigation were awarded to the same contractor,” the report stated.
PAC member and Public Works Minister Juan Edghill questioned what caused the region to only invite three contractors to bid. He also questioned whether an evaluation panel was in place in 2018 and 2019 when these contracts were awarded, to which Morrison said that it was.
“I’m asking that the financial secretary investigate this matter. Because if we have such a situation occurring, those evaluators need to be evaluated by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board. Because then we have problems.”
“When you get these tenders in, they have to be evaluated. An evaluation panel is looking at oranges, apples and bananas. The job to be done is apples. So, you know that the first time, you disqualify banana and orange, because it’s apples you looking for… 10, 15 times, the same thing goes to the same set of evaluators. And they have not signalled to the Tender Board,” Edghill pointed out.
Meanwhile, Blackman was asked by acting PAC Chairman Ganesh Mahipaul whether the region continues to use restrictive tendering and single source under her watch, which began in 2020, to which she said yes. He also asked her whether the contractors were approved at the Tender Board level before they were engaged to do the work.
“Earlier on, we used to write the National Tender Board, to get permission. But afterwards, we learned the regional tender board can give permission for restrictive tendering, providing its (below the threshold),” she explained.
Mahipaul meanwhile urged the region to utilise the services of reputable persons, both within and without the region, to serve as evaluators in Region Five for contracts that come before the regional tender board.
Blackman, who said that she was struggling with just four evaluators, admitted that she was not aware evaluators could be brought in from outside the region. Further, Finance Secretary Sukrishnalall Pasha noted that he would reach out to other REOs to ensure others aren’t struggling with the same, unnecessary constraint.
The expenditure would have occurred in 2019, under the former A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government and at a time when that Government would have already fallen to a No-Confidence Motion (NCM).
