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presented its findings to Local Government, Rural and Urban Development Minister Ignatius Chombo on Friday.
“The team observed remarkable shortfalls inherent in the procurement of chemicals, which stem from hiccups within the tendering system,” reads the report.
Mr Pawadyira said the city’s tender policy document was devoid of meaningful checks and balances.
He said the city’s tender documents at US$500 were very expensive, compared to the regional price of US$200. “This could be deemed either a fundraising exercise or a barrier for local budding companies”.
The investigation established that officials dealing with various aspects of the tender process should be rotated as in some cases members of the tender formulation process were in the tender verification and adjudication.
Companies that were disqualified in the tendering of the water chemicals were never notified of their failure or success.
The adjudication team was accused of varying technical specifications to accommodate companies that had failed to meet minimum standards.
“Chamber secretary, town clerk and city treasurer failed to exercise due diligence on the report of the tender adjudication committee before signing the report and dispatching it to the procurement board,” reads the report.
The team also found that half of the procurement board members were not properly inducted.
“Chamber secretary should ensure that project implementation team periodically carries out vendor appraisal throughout the life of each tender to ensure adherence to agreed terms of each tender”.
The team recommended the participation of more local companies in the manufacture of water treatment chemicals.
Online Reporter