Contracts: BPP saves FG N216.7bn

BY KENNETH EHIGIATOR
The Bureau of Public Procurement, BPP, has saved the Federal Government N216,690,945,419.56 in the implementation of 2010 budget, following review of project proposals submitted by Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs.

Director-General of BPP, Engr. Emeka Ezeh, who disclosed this weekend, said the money was saved from certified proposals in the capital allocation of the 2011 budget which was implemented between January 1, 2010, and March 31, 2011.

He said: “We have been painstaking in the vetting process to make project proposals better in the interest of transparency and quality”, stressing that the calculations came from proposals from 36 entities.

“Through the judicious use of scarce resources, it is expected that infrastructure and utilities which have been lacking in the nation’s social life would be provided. The BPP is now happy to report that substantial progress is being made in ridding the nation of avoidable excesses in public procurement.”

Engr Eze said the essence of the review was not to accuse anyone of inflating contract sum, adding that it was a deliberate move to improve the procurement process and assist government get value for money.

He said through the Public Procurement Act, 2007, the basis of participation in the quest for contract had been expanded, stressing that the consciousness, knowledge and awareness of the Act had gradually discouraged the earlier prevalence of sourcing for competitive bidding in the award of contracts.

Ezeh explained why those who had lost out in the process have remained critical of the Act.

“A sense of participation and possible victory from bidding has been engendered by the Act. This fact, which relates with the participatory tenets of democracy, highlights Nigeria as a country which is moving with the times.

“The Act has also brought about a higher level of responsiveness on the part of contractors and consultants, which raises the stakes for quality and productivity in the execution of public projects,” he said.

According to him, the cost of contracts is no longer unreasonably expensive as it is vetted with due rigour.
He noted that of the 952 requests for due process certificates received by the Bureau, 843 were certified, while only nine were denied certification, with  100 projects awaiting further clarifications by MDAs.

The BPP boss, who explained that a lot of projects were still in the hands of the MDAs, described the Public Procurement Act as a call to probity and accountability.

“The Act is a clarion call to probity, accountability, adherence to methods in the disbursement of a common wealth and the production of evidence in the application of the wealth.

“The Act tells us that it is no longer business as usual in the use of people’s money; many bidders who hitherto have lost confidence in public advertisements for contracts, have lots of success story to tell on the strength of the Act,” he said.