NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The Opposition has slammed the government for releasing what it described as an "incomplete" procurement report, arguing that it simply does not provide the requisite information legally required.
Free National Movement (FNM) leader Michael Pintard in a statement: "This Davis-led PLP never fails to underwhelm and underperform. Late into this past Sunday night, the Ministry of Finance released an incomplete procurement report. Even with it being well late, this so-called procurement report simply does not provide the requisite information that the Prime Minister is legally required to provide to the Bahamian public.
"Even in something so straightforward and basic, this PLP government has failed to follow the law in the presentation of this report in a number of instances. First, we have no information provided on any procurement from September 2021 to August 2022, although the government still has a legal obligation to provide this information consistent with the law in force at that time."
Pintard further noted that none of the contracts awarded by state-owned enterprises such as NIB, the Public Hospitals Authority, Water & Sewerage, or the University of The Bahamas are included in the report.
He also argued that the Prime Minister, as Minister of Finance, is required to lay the report in the House of Assembly.
"The fact that this half-baked incomplete report has come out in the dead of night via press release is nothing more in my view than a sad but now common attempt by the flailing and failing Davis-led administration to sidestep accountability for its contents.
"The opposition rejects this so-called report outright. This is not what the law requires. We demand that the Prime Minister comes to Parliament at the next sitting with a full and proper procurement report showing all contracts by government agencies and state-owned enterprises for the period of September 1, 2021 to June 30, 2023," said Pintard.
The Organisation for Responsible Governance (ORG) yesterday welcomed the government's recent disclosure of over 800 contracts through the Bonefire eProcurement portal, but noted that the list is not comprehensive and lacks information regarding the benefit owner requirement.
The highly-anticipated public procurement disclosure sheds light on the allocation of 843 contracts with a combined value of $140 million through its online portal. These contract awards encompass the period from September 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023. The disclosure does not encompass all contracts issued by the Davis administration during the majority of its first year in office or those awarded during the concluding days of the Minnis administration.
The initial Public Procurement Act, effective from September 1, 2021, has since been repealed and replaced. Under the original act, it was mandatory for all government contracts to be made public within 60 days of their issuance. The government was required to disclose crucial information, including the names and addresses of winning bidders, the procuring entity, the procurement selection method, and the contract's value.
The revised Public Procurement Act became effective on July 1 of the current year. However, the recent release only provides contract values and identifies the procuring entity, procurement vendor, and winning bidder. Notably, it lacks the address of the winning bidder and additional details.
ORG Executive Director Matt Aubry noted: "In accordance with Section 57 of the Public Procurement Act 2023, it is required that the notice of awarded contracts should include the following specific elements, as outlined below. The report submitted does encompass most of these components. However, there are notable exceptions. Notably, the "location of performance" is not consistently provided within the description of the scope, and none of the addresses of the businesses are provided, though the law specifies that only private or residential addresses are to be redacted."
Aubry also noted that Section 58 of the legislation mandates that procurement contracts financed by international funding agencies such as the IDB and IMF must be accompanied by the government's publication of the beneficial owners of the awarded vendor within 60 days of the contract being awarded.
"Regrettably, this crucial requirement does not appear to be fulfilled, as there are no specified beneficial owners listed in the current report," he said.
"It is essential to acknowledge that the list of contracts in this report is not exhaustive, as certain contract categories, including legal services, financial consultancies, property rental or acquisitions, audit and actuarial services, telecommunications, rental properties, and research and development-related expenses, are exempt from mandatory reporting in the legislation. In its benchmarking and evaluation of this Act before its passage, ORG recognized these exclusions and advocated for their inclusion as best practices. It is also notable that awarded contracts that would have been required under the Public Procurement Act, 2021 remain unreported," Aubry said.
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