Minister of State Joseph Harmon yesterday said that as soon as the National Assembly is reconvened and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) completes Terms of Reference (ToR) for the Public Procurement Commission, President David Granger will swear in its members.
The opposition PPP/C earlier this week criticised the government for failing to swear in the members of the commission, who were approved by the National Assembly in August, before the two-month parliamentary recess.
Granger last week told reporters that he was ready to swear in the commission but that the non-completion of the ToR was an administrative snag. “As recently as two weeks ago, a date and time for swearing in had been announced but concerns about the drafting of the ToR delayed it but it is strictly an administrative matter,” he had said on the Public Interest interview programme.
Harmon yesterday told a post-Cabinet briefing that one of the main issues is the selection of the commission’s Chair-person, who is to be a full-time employee.
“The issue that has to do with the PPC is an issue that has to do with the Public Accounts Committee setting out terms and conditions itself… as soon as the PAC sits, they have some proposals which will go before it, in terms of salaries and things like that. The law requires that the Chairman is a full time employee of that commission …which means of those
persons who are named, one will be a Chairman…one of those persons, if they are working somewhere else, they will have to leave their job,” Harmon said.
“You know that if you are leaving one job and going somewhere for another job, at least you must know what is the cheese [money], what are you getting before you leave that other job. So, these terms and conditions have to be settled by the Public Accounts Committee,” he added.
Harmon said he believes that shortly after the National Assembly reconvenes next Thursday, the ToR will be finalised and the documentation for the commissioners to be sworn in would be ready for the president’s approval.
“The President has said that he is ready to sign the document. Chairman of the PAC Irfaan Ali has said that it would be one of the first business when Parliament is reconvened. We would like that to be a top priority as well and we will give that our full support to ensure it is fast-tracked,” he stated.
He said that government is “happy to sign off” on the commission’s establishment so that it can begin its work, which would ensure that “government has no hand in the awarding of contracts.”
The nominated members of the Commission are Emily Dodson, Carol Corbin, Sukrishnalall Pasha, Ivor B English and Dr Nanda K Gopaul.
