Dear Editor,
The findings of a report of the Auditor General are that UHWI awarded approximately half a billion Jamaican dollars in contracts from 2019 to date for which there is no supporting procurement documentation. There is also evidence pointing to the award of several contracts by the hospital, after which the procurement process would be engaged retroactively to create the illusion of due process in the selection of the winning bidder.
The Public Procurement Act in Section 5 lists as some of its objectives: maximising economy and efficiency, obtaining value for money, fostering transparency, promoting integrity, etc. The procurement framework does not and should not ever facilitate “contracts for friends” or “reckless spending”. It is essential that the procurement of government contracts be fair and responsible as it is taxpayers’ money that is being spent on these goods and services. There is, however, a need to balance objectives, and one objective that has been woefully neglected for years in public procurement practice is efficiency.
The current government established a Streamlining Processes for Efficiency and Economic Development (SPEED) initiative with the mandate of reducing bureaucracy and red tape within the government, headed by Minister Ambassador Audrey Marks, who operates out of the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM). The ministry with portfolio responsibility for Public Procurement laws and regulations in Jamaica, however, is not OPM but the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service. It has yet to be seen how the SPEED initiative will address the seeming Public Procurement behemoth which has been decried for its inefficiency by the ministers of Justice, national security, and works, among many others.
Recent changes have been made to the Public Procurement legislation, increasing thresholds for the various procurement methods to be used. This is inclusive of an increase to the threshold for direct contracting (single-source procurement) and restricted bidding for contracts up to a maximum value of $3 million JMD and $20 million JMD, respectively. The goal is to increase the ability and speed of public bodies accessing much-needed goods and services without having to go to market for protracted periods and being forced to sift through several bids which may not readily conform to the required product specifications or quality standards. This was greatly needed, as we have a long history of the public suffering while the delivery of much-needed goods, projects, or works has been delayed, sometimes for years, while being stuck in procurement.
However, it has been seen that, given the opportunity, the procurement process will be abused or totally circumvented, whether in the name of expedience or for other more nefarious purposes. This brings to the fore the following question:
Can a balance be struck between efficient procurement and meeting the need for transparency and integrity in the procurement process? It seems that the current framework we have created is a double-edged sword, and if we are not careful, we will become our own victim.
I am,
Small Axe.