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Procurement Commission ‘by June month end’ – Minister Rodrigues-Birkett
By Gary Eleazar
The Public Procurement Commission which is a constitutional body born from the Public Procurement legislation should be established by the end of June.
This is according to Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, who was at the time responding to her shadow Parliamentarian, APNU’s Deborah Backer, in the House yesterday.
Foreign Affairs Minister, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett
Backer had raised the argument that one of the provisions of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union is the establishment of such a commission which had already been enshrined in the Guyana Constitution.
The Foreign Affairs Minister told the House that to the best of her knowledge this is a matter actively engaging the attention of the political opposition and the administration.
She said that at present the status quo is set at the submission of names.
The parliamentary opposition and the government are to submit the names of persons to sit on the commission.
This committee would subsequently be finalized by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament which is set to be established shortly, following a ruling in the High Court by Chief Justice (ag) Ian Chang on the Parliamentary Selection Committee.
Cabinet’s involvement in matters related to the procurements shall have to cease when the Public Procurement Commission is established.
The Procurement Act of Guyana stipulates the role of the Commission.
Under the current Legislation, Cabinet has the right to review all procurements that exceed $15M. According to the legislation in force, Cabinet shall conduct its review on the basis of a streamlined tender evaluation report to be adopted by the Public Procurement Commission.
“The Cabinet and, upon its establishment, the Public Procurement Commission, shall review annually the Cabinet’s threshold for review of procurements, with the objective of increasing that threshold over time, so as to promote the goal of progressively phasing out Cabinet involvement and decentralising the procurement process.”
The Procurement Act also states that in conducting a review, Cabinet may object to the award of the procurement contract only if it determines that the procuring entity failed to comply with applicable procedures.
If the Cabinet objects to an award, the matter shall be referred to the procuring entity for further review. It is emphasised that the legislation’s clause shall not be construed as authorising the Cabinet to award a tender to any other supplier or contractor.
The president, at a recent press briefing, told media operatives that the usual differences of opinion between the government and the People’s National Congress Reform is what led to the delay in the resubmission of the administration’s nominees for the Public Procurement Commission.
Former President Bharrat Jagdeo had said some years ago that three nominees were submitted but there was a huge debate on the candidates and as such the process was paused.
The role of the Public Accounts Committee, which will deliberate on the names submitted by Government and the Opposition, includes the monitoring and reviewing of all public procurement systems. It also monitors the performance of procurement bodies. In such cases, the adherence to regulations in procuring services and the execution of works are examined. The PAC has responsibility over the procedures of ministerial, regional and national procurement entities, as well as those of project execution units.
The Public Procurement Commission, once established, has the task of investigating complaints from contractors and public enterprises, along with suppliers and cases of irregularities. It has the authority to propose remedial action in all instances.
The Constitution stipulates that the commission should be independent, impartial and should discharge its functions fairly.
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