Last Thursday, the National Assembly adjourned for six months the debate on a bill to amend Public Procurement Act to reinstate Cabinet’s role in the awarding of public contracts. The Act as it currently stands requires Cabinet’s involvement either to be progressively phased out over time or to cease, upon the establishment of the Public Procurement Commission. It also limits Cabinet’s role to one in which it can only object to an award if the procurement entity failed to comply with the applicable procurement procedures.
While it is true that prior to 2003 Cabinet has always had a role in the awarding of public contracts, there were persistent criticisms over the years of the failure of government ministries and departments to adhere to the Tender Board Regulations. In addition, there was public pressure to reform the Government’s tendering procedures since many stakeholders held the view that the arrangements in place did not provide them with confidence as to the fairness and transparency in the award of government contracts. There was also no mechanism in place to address their concerns.
As a result, the Constitution was amended in 2001 by the insertion of nine articles which essentially replace Cabinet’s involvement with that of an independent and impartial commission with reporting relationship to the Legislature, and not the Executive. With approximately 70 per cent of the national budget going towards public procurement, and more so
