... Questionable selection of bidders
AN EXAMINATION of tender evaluation reports (TERs) for the 112 contracts showed no evidence that RADA assessed bidders to determine whether they met the minimum qualifying criteria in compliance with the Instruction to Bidders and Procurement Guidelines.
The audit divulged that RADA did not provide any evidence it conducted a prequalification exercise of potential bidders for limited tender contracts in accordance with government guidelines.
It was reported that RADA’s own internal audit found instances during site inspections carried out in February 2018 where roads that were rehabilitated in late 2017 had begun to show signs of deterioration within three months of rehabilitation.
There were also questionable decisions in relation to priority lists for roads to be rehabilitated.
At the request of the auditor general, RADA provided its approved list of farm roads prioritised for rehabilitation during the period 2017-18 and 2018-19, along with the reports of roadworks completed during the same period.
An assessment of the priority lists for both years revealed the inclusion of roads leading to RADA’s parish offices in St Mary and St Ann.
The auditor general found no evidence where RADA consulted with the municipal corporations in both parishes for possible cost-sharing.
Another issue that triggered concern for the auditor general was the high incidence of rescoping, or variation, of contracts.
Monroe Ellis pointed out that in 53 instances, specification for drainage was either reduced or omitted. This, despite RADA’s records showing that the entity had identified that the quality of roadwork could be easily undone by rainfall owing to inadequate drainage.
The maintenance of farm roads is linked to the national outcome of rural and agricultural development.