Kuwaza responds to Biti

to Finance Minister Tendai Biti’s claims to legislators recently that the SPB had awarded a tender to a company that had been blacklisted by Government.
Minister Biti also accused the SPB of awarding a tender to Eleco Elevator Company to supply and install elevators at Kaguvi Building.
The company, he said, was incompetent because it did not have the capacity to do the job even after it had been paid a deposit and provided with materials to use.
Mr Kuwaza said the Ministry of Public Works had attempted to have Eleco sidelined from the process.
“It is possible that there was an attempt to corner the market by channelling all work in the direction of a specific competitor,” said Mr Kuwaza.
“This would create a monopoly in the business and of course many beneficiaries down the line.
“The board should not be used to achieve such underhand Mafia-like outcomes and the Ministry of Finance should be the first to support a Public Financial Management System devoid of corruption and manipulation.”
Mr Kuwaza said, as far as SPB is concerned, Eleco has not been blacklisted because the board that has the responsibility to effect such decisions had not done so.
He said in terms of Section 32 of the Procurement Regulations 2002, a contractor could be barred for a period of five years for reasons to do with unsatisfactory work, fraud, bad faith or bribery.
“The claim that Government blacklisted the company is therefore not true. Conversely, the person making this claim must adduce evidence of such blacklisting,” Mr Kuwaza said.
He attributed delays in the completion of some Government projects to lack of resources.
Mr Kuwaza said the SPB advised the Ministry of Finance and other high offices to limit the number of projects to a figure that can be afforded at any point in time.
“However, much to our surprise, the Secretary for Public Works has approached us for yet another new project in Victoria Falls for the UN Conference on Tourism in 2013 to be hosted by Zimbabwe and Zambia. No indication as to the source of money has been made.
“Yet we are accused by the Minister of Finance for lack of patriotism, in fact, willfully delaying developmental projects . . . Last year we were similarly attacked by the same Minister for delaying tenders. Evaluations from the accounting officers (permanent secretaries) are interrogated against the Evaluation Criteria. The board is the firewall against corruption and abuse of public positions,” he said.