The Auditor General’s Office has stated that the APNU+AFC government should not have used the “single source” method of procurement for the selection of consultants to conduct the 45 forensic audits it commissioned upon attaining office in 2015.
After assuming office in May last year, the David Granger-led government commissioned 45 audits which sought to review the performance and efficiency of publicly-owned entities, statutory bodies, projects and activities financed by or through public funds under the former PPP/C government.
These audits, according to a written response by Finance Minister Winston Jordan to questions laid in the National Assembly, cost the government a total of $133,045,900.
According to Minister Jordan, the audits were conducted in accordance with Section 4 (4) of the 2004 Audit Act while the procurement procedure followed in awarding the contracts was the single source option–in accordance with Section 28 (b) of the 2003 Procurement Act.
However, the 2015 Auditor General’s report, which was tabled in the National Assembly on Thursday, has put the cost of the audits at $135.576 million.
The report also challenges the Finance Ministry’s justification for using the single source procurement method to award the contracts.
“Section 28(b) of the Procurement Act states that the procuring entity may engage in single source procurement when the services by reason of their highly complex or specialize nature are available from only one source [however] since the ministry awarded forty five contracts to eighteen consultants including accounting firms it could be concluded that the service required were available from multiple sources as such the single source method of procurement should not have been used for the award,” the report states.
