PPP sees Ram, Goolsarran’s appointment as sole sourcing

Jun 23, 2015 News

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– despite procurement extravaganzas while in office

By Jarryl Bryan
The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) yesterday lashed out at the government’s hiring of Auditors

Anand Goolsaran and Christopher Ram to carry out forensic audits throughout the state apparatus. PPP General Secretary, Clement Rohee, said that in the absence of a Procurement Commission the government was providing no transparency while hiring these firms.
He said that the government has been a fierce critic of the previous government’s track record of controversial procurement practices. Now it has sole sourced the audit.
Not only did the PPP criticize the hiring of these firms, Rohee was of the view that the government was hypocritical in hiring two men who criticized the PPP/C while in office and were known supporters of the A Partnership for National Unity/ Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC), an accusation that has been leveled consistently against the PPP/C during its tenure in Government.
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), one of the standing committees in the National Assembly, is responsible for examining Government expenditure and accounts. Having oversight for the Public Procurement Commission, it also submits nominated individuals for the Commission to Parliament. The PAC is chaired by a member of the opposition, as well as partly composed of opposition members.
However, the establishment of the Commission has been delayed for years, with claims from the then PPP/C administration that the Commission would erode the executive’s no-objection prerogative in public procurement. Hotly debated in the 10th Parliament, the establishment of the Commission was subsequently stymied when former President Donald Ramotar prorogued parliament last October.
There have been hopes that with the advent of a new Parliament, the Commission could finally be established. However, the PPP/C not only boycotted the opening of the 11th Parliament on June 10, but has refused to submit a list of MPs for Parliament. Still seething after claims that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) rigged the May 11th National and Regional elections in favor of the APNU+AFC, the party has also remained unclear on when or if they will ever take up their opposition seats in Parliament.
Since, according to the law there is need for a two- thirds majority before the Commission could be established, questions have arisen over the PPP/C’s culpability in holding up several orders of business scheduled within Parliament.
Asked if he did not consider the party’s criticism unfair when it has refused to enter Parliament and play a role in establishing the Commission, Rohee was adamant that the party’s position was a fair one.
“Of course it’s fair. The sitting President (Granger) must have been aware of what was required (to establish the Commission). It is not the PPP/C that made the promise of the immediate establishment of the Public Procurement Commission, within a 100 days; it was they (APNU+AFC) that made that declaration!”
“More than that, how can they speak so proudly about your intention to establish a Public Procurement Commission, when the services of persons are being procured to carry out audits of government agencies and departments without it going through the established procurement process?”
He also lashed out at Goolsarran and Ram’s appointment, stating that the two individuals were “friends” of the administration, who previously attacked the PPP/C. Rohee reminded the gathering that it was the APNU+AFC who had declared that the days for sole sourcing was over upon assumption of office. He queried whether there was ever a bidding process or public tender for the two auditors.
“Was it advertised? It wasn’t. Here, is what Kaieteur, Stabroek and Inews used to criticize us for, that we were doing things without going through the established legal process. Here it is before our very eyes, two persons have been procured to carry out these audits and nobody knows what the process was gone through for their services to be hired.”
When confronted with the PPP/C’s track record of not tendering for several commissions while in Government, the General Secretary back pedalled, admitting that Commissions did fall under the President’s discretion and prerogative.
The PPP/C, while in office, faced much criticism for sole sourcing many services at the expense of other potential bidders. One of the most infamous cases was new Guyana Pharmaceuticals Company (GPC), which has been the bulk supplier of billions of dollars worth of drugs to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) since 1999.
The Pharmaceutical Company, moreover, has as its CEO Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop, best friend of former President Bharrat Jagdeo and has been cited numerous times in the Auditor General’s reports for deficient procurement and supply of drugs to the government. In particular, the company became embroiled in controversy in 2012 when it was revealed that the PPP/C administration was paying new GPC six times the retail price for certain drugs, costing the nation millions in excess of what they should have been paying.
Since assuming office, the new administration has made no bones of its intentions for a complete overhaul of the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB), and has even submitted proposals to cabinet for the necessary changes.

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