
Ebonyi State Government has denied insinuations in some quarters, alluding that it awarded N4.1 billion projects without bidding processes.
The government was reacting to an online publication that it awarded the contract without a competitive process.
The online media organization alleged that multiple companies were not chosen to bid for the projects.
The State Commissioner for Information and Orientation. Engr Jude Okpor described the online media report as a self-conceived, subjective and unresearched report.
He said that the report was designed to dish out lies and half-truths to the public without recourse to the ethics of journalism.
“In as much as we do not regard the report as deserving of our diligent response, we wish to make few comments in order to assuage the reading public whose sensibilities may have been insulted by the obviously mischievous headline”
“The State Government has over some period of time, followed the reports and some clandestine activities of some of the reporters in the organisation and have come to a conclusion that the online media organization reporters are deliberate mischief makers”
Okpor noted that the online reporter dabbled into self-conceived, subjective and unresearched reports without recourse to the ethics of journalism.
“We simply wish to assure them and their paymasters that their incessant media attack on Ebonyi State Government, is tantamount to effort in futility as the present government can never be distracted by such infantile diatribe”
According to Okpor, “such allegation is unfounded because it needed to have been lectured that in Open Tender, the state does not choose or select companies that will bid”
“All companies are allowed to submit a bid for the project, it’s only in a selective tender that the state chooses companies that will participate in the tender”
“The tenders were advertised for 30 days on the state e-procurement system, and if only one company paid tender fees and submitted a bid, that company can be awarded if their bid is responsive”
“Section 35 (2a) of the Ebonyi State Public Procurement Law (2020) specifies provisions to re-advertise a tender, and single bid submission is not among the conditions that should warrant re-advertising a tender.
“According to the State Public Procurement Law (2020), the Bureau of Public Procurement is not required to cancel the Tender process if only one company shows interest/ submitted bid for an open tender that has been advertised. In this case, the BPP proceeded with the evaluation and award of the project because the bids submitted were responsive.
The Commissioner reiterated the Government’s commitment to continue to conduct all our affairs with the principles of open governance as enshrined in the government mantra of the People’s Charter of Needs.