For a month and a half the Ministry of Transport and Communications managed to build an enviable asset on opend, using one of the loopholes in the Law on Public Procurement. At first glance, the amounts are small (up to 67 thousand levs), which is why the so-called public invitation method is need, allowing the contracting authority to negotiate with certain companies. The publication of the call is made directly, without the intervention of officials of the Public Procurement Agency, with the full responsibility for the accuracy and legality of the content of the documentation falling on the contracting authority. Another feature is that this way the state may enter into a contract, even if only one bid is submitted. Experts are adamant that without any external control, these procedures are extremely convenient for quick distribution of money between the right companies.
Taking advantage of this controversial model, on March 1 the Ministry of Ivailo Moscowski announced a procedure for ongoing daily and thorough cleaning of their buildings. From the technical specification of the order it is evident that it requires a huge amount of work – sweeping, washing and drying hard floors (operating rooms, stairwells, lobbies, corridors, elevators) with a total area of nearly seven thousand square meters, as well disposal of waste, washing of carpet and rugs, cleaning windows, glass walls, chandeliers, etc. Against this background, the declared value of the public invitation of 66 thousand levs seems ridiculously small. The answer to this lies in the period for provision of these services. It is either until the expiration of the framework agreement for the period 2013 – 2014 of the central public procurement body, or until the financial resources of 66 thousand levs are exhausted. In a nutshell – whichever of the two occurs first. Under such conditions hardly any serious company would be willing to tackle this demand. Unless the deliberately underestimated value is subsequently adhusted, after the signing of the contract, in the positive direction. Such examples are well known and there will be no doubt if a similar conclusion scenario takes places now, too.
The BANKER
