GRA on Twitter ‘hot seat’ over contracts awarded for curtains, calendars, office furniture

Ghanaians on X (formerly Twitter) have shared varied opinions over the value of contracts that were given to certain entities for the procurement of calendars, curtains, and office furniture.

The various contracts which can be found on the Public Procurement Authority’s website are as follows:

Supply of Office Furniture

Contract date – December 1, 2022
Contract Award Price – GH¢1,275,253.20
Contract Type – Single Sourced
Contract Awarded to – Jaide Solutions

Supply of Office Furniture

Contract date – December 1, 2022
Contract Award Price – $225,056.00
Contract Type – Single Sourced
Contract Awarded to – Precision Hub Service International

Supply and Installation of Office Curtains at Head Office Annex
Contract date – December 30, 2022
Contract Award Price – GH¢198,524.40
Contract Type – Single Sourced
Contract Awarded to – Emperor Hive Limited

Procurement of Furniture and Fittings

Contract date – September 27, 2022
Contract Award Price – GH¢1,060,476.56
Contract Type – Single Sourced
Contract Awarded to – Favrace Company Limited

Printing and Supply of 2023 Notepad Diaries

Contract date – October 14, 2022
Contract Award Price – GH¢1,275,253.20
Contract Type – Single Sourced
Contract Awarded to – JIT Magazine and Diaries Services Ltd

Another Procurement for Office Furniture

Contract date – June 30, 2022
Contract Award Price – GH¢1,767,846.60
Contract Type – Single Sourced
Contract Awarded to – Sams Firma Ltd

The main concerns that have been raised over the awarding of the contracts have been over the use of sole sourcing since the items do not fall under the criteria for sole sourcing.

According to the Public Procurement Authority, these are some of the justifications that the PPA accepts for sole sourcing:

(a) Where goods, works or services are only available from a particular supplier or contractor, or if a particular supplier or contractor has exclusive rights in respect of the goods, works, or services, and no reasonable alternative or substitute exists;

(b) Where there is an urgent need for the goods, works, or services and engaging in tender proceedings or any other method of procurement is impractical due to unforeseeable circumstances giving rise to the urgency which is not the result of dilatory conduct on the part of the procurement entity;

(c) Where owing to a catastrophic event, there is an urgent need for the goods, works, or technical services, making it impractical to use other methods of procurement because of the time involved in using those methods.

Another concern raised was the “relevance” of the items for which these contracts were awarded.

See some of the comments below