The Tribune

By JADE RUSSELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

jrussell@tribunemedia.net

FINANCIAL Secretary Simon Wilson could not say when the government would comply with the Public Procurement Act’s requirement to disclose contract awards but said officials are working on doing so.

The law requires government to disclose the name and address of winning bidders, the procuring entity, the procurement selection method and the award amount within 60 days of the contract award.

Mr Wilson said in April that the government would fulfil this obligation when the reporting capacity of its procurement system is improved. He said information was being backfilled on the new Bonfire procurement portal.

Asked for an update yesterday, he said: “That’s a work in progress. So, we have made great strides. We have most agencies have their contracts reported. There are one or two ones which we think are critical to be included before we publish. So, we are waiting for those agencies to upload their last contracts awards, and once that’s done, we’ll be able to publish.”

Asked about the delay in complying with the law, Mr Wilson said: “The Act came into effect July 1st. This is the 24th. So, I don’t know what’s too long.”

He said the government is committed to compliance.

“We are doing more public procurement than ever before,” he said. “If you go on our portal, you’ll see many opportunities that were never there, so we do everything that we should be doing. It’s always a work in progress. Yes, we can improve. The publication of contracts is a long-standing item that we’re working on, but we are actively working.”

Mr Wilson said he believes the public will be pleased when the publication process is completed.

“We are just trying to get the first publication right because once the first publication is right, the other ones should follow,” he said.

Last week, the Bahamas Contractors Association president, Leonard Sands, criticised the government’s failure to publish contract awards and accused the administration of deliberately ignoring the requirement.

“The government and the minister of public works by choice are deciding to break the law,” he said. “The law says what should happen and they do not do what the act and the law says.”