President Hage Geingob says he is deeply disturbed by allegations that the Central Procurement Board of Namibia may not have awarded tenders to bidders with the lowest substantially qualifying bids as required under section 55 of the Public Procurement Act.
He says the ongoing administrative process relating to the reconsideration of the controversial multi-million-dollar medical tender must be in accordance with the provisions of the sanctioning law be dealt with. He added that if corruption or collusion is discovered in any public tender process, he expects consequences of law to take place.
Dr. Geingob in a statement reacted to the calls for him to intervene and cancel the tender amid public outcry.
The 650-million-dollar tender has sparked public debate and outcry with a number of individuals, including some politicians publicly calling on President Geingob to cancel the entire tender process.
The calls are made under the impression that the President has statutory powers to do so.
This stems from Dr. Geingob’s directive to the Minister of Works and Transport to cancel the multi-million tender on the upgrade and rehabilitation of Hosea Kutako International Airport after irregularities including price inflation were discovered.
The cancellation was made at a time when the procurement law, in other words, the repealed Tender Board Act, was only applicable to the government and not to public enterprise tenders.
With the promulgation of the new Public Procurement Act in 2015, the President no longer have the powers to cancel a tender as those powers are now vested in the Central Procurement Board of Namibia, CPBN.
The Presidency says the CPBN is therefore the only body that has a direct responsibility to ensure that the objects of the Public Procurement Act are.
The board must ensure that the government must get value for its money, the lowest substantially responsive bid is selected, and the process is not subverted through corruption, unfair preference given to some bids over others and other irregularities.
It also has the power to cancel a procurement process on limited and circumscribed grounds.
The CPBN has since admitted to a number of irregularities in the awarding of the more than 600-million-dollar tender, which has also seen various other bidders requesting a reconsideration of the concerned bidding process in the disputed medical tender.
The President is also concerned about allegations of a lack of due diligence on the part of the procurement board.
President Geingob without seeking to inappropriately interfere with the statutory process called on public functionaries in government Ministries, public enterprises and the CPBN to ensure that the Public Procurement Act, its provisions and codes of good practice are applied strictly.
He says instances of irregularity, corruption and non-compliance with the law should be investigated with immediate effect and without fear or favor and addressed in a fair and transparent manner.
The Head of State also urged lawmakers and other members of the public calling on him to cancel of the tender, to familiarize themselves with the laws they have passed in Parliament, and in particular the provisions of the public procurement Act.