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‘We didn’t bid for the $44M hospital project’ – GDF states
Kaieteur News – The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) recently received a contract to upgrade the Paramakatoi Health Center to a ‘Smart’ facility, but even though the project sum is in excess of $44 million, it did not pass through the state’s procuring entity, the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB).
This is according to the Guyana Defence Force.
Senior members of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) including Brigadier (ret)Gary Beaton conducts an inspection at one of their ongoing projects (GDF photo)
In response to a letter by a social activist, Ms. Audreyanna Thomas, who questioned what she dubbed as an ‘unfair advantage’ the GDF has over other companies, the Defence Force said that it does not participate in public bidding processes. In fact, the GDF said that it is the President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, who wants the Force to play a role in national development. “President and Commander-in-Chief, Dr. Irfaan Ali, shortly after taking office, articulated his vision for the Guyana Defence Force. As part of that vision, was his desire to see the Force play a greater role in national development,” the GDF said.
It added, “It is in this regard, that the Force has partnered with Regional Democratic Councils to execute a number of community projects in several administrative regions. Many of these projects were completed and handed over to communities”.
The GDF noted that construction projects are not new to the organisation, as ranks of the Engineer Corps have “embarked on a number of civil work projects including the drilling of wells in South Rupununi.”
In a letter to this newspaper, Thomas said she was shocked that neither the Private Sector Commission (PSC) nor the Chambers of Commerce questioned the award of the project. She reasoned, “The Guyana Defence Force is a state agency and is funded by the state. The President is the Commander-in-Chief, and the Defence Board is a state entity, therefore the GDF cannot bid for a government contract without the knowledge of the President and the Defence Board. Additionally, the GDF cannot participate in a public procurement (bidding/tender) process along with private sector entities.
Against this backdrop, she called for the contract to be made null and void.
While citing unfair competition, Thomas questioned, “Will the salary being paid to those GDF members who will be working on this project come from the government funds or the project? Will their salaries be stopped for the period when they would be working on this project and recommence after the project is completed? Will their pension and other benefits for the period of the construction of the hospital be stopped also?”
Public Relations Officer of the GDF, Heppilena Ferguson told Kaieteur News that she could not respond to that concern. She would only say that the defence agency has been conducting several projects across the country in collaboration with various Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs).
The NPTAB is stipulated by law to receive, open, evaluate, and decide the award for all procurements above the threshold amounts for the regions, ministries above the value of $15 million. It is then required to send a recommendation to the Minister of Finance, who places the bids before Cabinet for approval. United Kingdom Department for International Development is facilitating the Smart Healthcare Facilities in the Caribbean project. Some $835 million (US$4.175 million) has been set aside for the project.
The local health facilities that are scheduled to be upgraded under this project include the Diamond Diagnostic Hospital, the Leonora Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, Mabaruma Regional Hospital and the Paramakatoi Health Centre.
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