WINDOWS -
By Salim bin Hamad al Jahwari -
Contracting companies vie to obtain public tenders through the Tender Board to construct public utility buildings ie schools, roads, residential units or building for government departments or ministries and other service projects. After conducting the normal procedures tenders are awarded to companies that bid for the lowest cost.
In this first stage the procedures are normally flawless and in accord with the legal framework. It is the following stage that sees manipulations — of course the word is not applicable to all companies. After it is won the concession is sold to another company with the same grade or lower. The second company likewise sells it to a third one and the process goes on in the same way sometimes to the ninth company. Some projects end up to be executed by workers who were gathered from the street on daily wages.
All these companies benefit out of doing nothing aside from office negotiations, they gain millions of rials in commissions. Eventually one more disaster is added to those we already have instead of a new edifice that would become a source of pride for the nation. Some of these building show cracks while others may have collapsed altogether. In many cases the construction work is halted pending a judicial ruling.
The reasons for this are many but the most important is the absence of monitoring from the authority that awards the tender. Monitoring is necessary to ensure that the company is carrying out the work as well as it should. This can be done by means of surprise visits to the construction site to make sure that no company apart from the one that has won the tender is carrying out the work. It is known that companies need to have part of the work done for them by other companies specialising in specific areas, however this should be done according to the law and by means of a legal subcontracts. The consultant overseeing a project can be a source of information to verify that the company is abiding by the tender terms.
Today’s world is seething with con artists with multiple schemes of which we have to beware. Sadly, some consider such manipulations as smartness, but it is a deadly to ignore such malpratices and as it can result in loss of innocent lives whose only fault is being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
We need to counter such malpratices in an area connected with the lives of ordinary people. Such manipulation should be stamped out as it squanders the public fund, and delays the delivery of services to the citizens. Tougher measures should be taken against those who violate the laws and flout regulations. To be able to do this effectively we need to collect information about the projects under construction. This will help bring to light any shortcomings and enable us to effectively eradicate attempts to cheat.
Moreover, several systems need to be reviewed so as to make sure that the public funds go to the hands of the right people.
