The Public Procurement Commission (PPC) yesterday disclosed that in the five active complaints before it, documentation has not been presented by the procuring entities and the NPTAB and an approach may be made to the court to compel the production of information.
In a statement, it said that this was particularly so in relation to the record of the tender proceedings including the Evaluation Reports.
The PPC noted that while Article 212DD (1) of the constitution empowers the Commission to request information in certain circumstances, the subsequent sub-section (Article 212DD (2)) was not given effect by the legislature to provide for penalties or other coercive powers for the failure to comply with such requests by the Commission. The Commission said it sought and is awaiting advice from its Legal Department as to the jurisdiction of the Commission to ensure that matters brought before it for investigation are duly discharged and at this time, has not ruled out approaching the High Court for orders compelling the production of the information.
The PPC restated that pursuant to Article 212W (2) of the Constitution of Guyana, it is an “independent and impartial” body which shall discharge its functions fairly in accordance with law.
This disclosure was made by the PPC in response to a news item in the October 29th Sunday Stabroek where APNU+AFC MP David Patterson had reported that the PPC had not acted on a request from him for an urgent meeting on the Tepui pump station award and other matters.
This was denied yesterday by the PPC which said the claim was sensationalist and scandalous.
In its response, the PPC said that it received Patterson’s request for a meeting on Friday October 27th, 2023, the request was “duly considered” at the commission’s meeting on the said day and “to this end, an official response to the request for a meeting will be dispatched shortly, the weekend having intervened”’.
The PPC said that Patterson’s request for a probe of the award of the Belle Vue Pump Station contract to the company, Tepui was received by email on Wednesday, October 4th, 2023 and was considered by the commission at the next meeting, which was Friday, October 6th, 2023.
The PPC then informed that pursuant to Article 212DD (1) of the constitution, a request in writing was sent, on the said day (6th Oct), to both the procuring entity [National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA)] and the tender board [National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB)], to submit to the Commission, “within five (5) business days certain relevant information and documents including the full record of the subject tender proceedings”. Patterson, the PPC says, was also invited, in writing, to submit any documents or further information to support his allegations on which his request for an investigation was made.
The PPC says that Patterson’s request for an update on his letter was received by email on October 23rd, 2023. That too was considered at a meeting of the commission on the said day and a reply was sent on October 27th, 2023. While deeming the Sunday Stabroek article as “not based on facts”, the PPC nevertheless admitted in its statement that to date neither the NDIA nor NPTAB has acknowledged or complied with its request. Patterson, too, says the PPC, has also not communicated with the commission as to the submission of any documents or further information to support his allegations.
