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Public Procurement up to Tk 2cr

Bill seeks to drop experience clause

Staff Correspondent
A bill was placed in parliament yesterday seeking amendment to the Public Procurement Act to drop the provision of past experience as a condition for getting public work contracts worth up to Tk 2 crore.
Planning Minister Air Vice Marshall (retd) AK Khandker placed the bill with a proposal for
a few amendments to the act terming it essential for smooth enforcement of the law.
The bill was sent to the parliamentary standing committee on planning ministry for scrutiny and placing report in parliament in two days.
If the bill is passed, procuring entities will not take into consideration past performance, production capacity or financial capability for awarding a public work contract worth up toTk2 crore
Therefore, a procuring entity will not mention the required minimum qualifying criteria in the procurement documents for participation in procurement activities worth up toTk 2 crore.
The main opposition BNP has alleged that the government made the move to give tender manipulation an institutional shape.
Following the cabinet's approval to the amendments to the act last month, senior BNP leaders at a press briefing termed the proposed amendment illogical and ill-motivated.
The opposition leaders said the present government has failed to control tender manipulation. Moreover it has moved to amend the PPA to make it easier for ruling party men to obtain government tenders.
"If this amendment is made, inexperienced ruling party people will get the opportunity to get public work contracts and eventually end up with substandard work," BNP Vice Chairman Osman Faruque said at the press briefing.
The main opposition lawmakers however were not present in the House to object to the bill.
Various donor agencies have also objected to the government move to relax the PPA, saying it will cause a fall in the quality of work and encourage corruption.
In defence of amending the act. AK Khandker said the PPA was enacted in 2006 to ensure transparency and accountability in the government procurement of goods and services.
“The amendments to the act are required to make enforcement of the law easier," the minister said in the written statement attached to the bill.
The bill also proposed several procedural amendments to the PPA.
The bill sought amendment to the definition of head of procuring entity declaring divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners and district judges as heads.
According to the PPA. the head of an entity now refers to a secretary of a ministry, the head of a government department of directorate or the chief executive of a local government agency, an autonomous or semi autonomous body or a corporation, or a corporate body established under the companies act.
The bill proposed holding a lottery to pick one lowest bidder, in case there is more than one against a work contract worth up toTk 2 crore.
It also proposed cancellation of a bid if it quotes an expenditure of more or less than five percent of the estimated spending of the work contract.