Dealers demand better response in car contract row

THE NEW Car Dealers Association of Jamaica (NCDAJ) is demanding a more detailed response from the Ministry of National Security after raising concerns about the award of two contracts to affiliates of Stewart’s Automotive Group as unfair.

The association has also questioned the rationale behind the decision of the Ministry of National Security (MNS) to bar its members from bidding on two of the advertised contracts to supply new vehicles to the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).

This comes after association members sent letters to the MNS requesting an explanation for why Stewart’s Auto Sales and Silver Star Motors, both affiliates of Stewart’s Automotive Group, were awarded the contracts to supply 64 pickups and 43 SUVs or crossovers.

Responding to the concerns, the ministry insisted that it had followed procurement guidelines and that the companies were able to demonstrate that they were separate entities.

In a letter to the editor yesterday, the NCDAJ President, John Ralston, indicated that the response is unsatisfactory.

“We have advised the Ministry of

National Security that our concerns have not been sufficiently responded to and immediately warrant a further and more wholesome response,” the letter read.

AT A DISADVANTAGE

Ralston said that the rule to prevent companies from bidding on both contracts put a number of companies at a disadvantage.

“If this was an attempt to ensure distribution of the vehicle purchases to more than one dealer, then that would have been a commendable intent, but sadly, we are not convinced that was the case,” the letter read. “It is no secret that several of our new car dealers in Jamaica offer several vehicle models that would fit the comparative set for both [contracts] on offer. So, why then insist that one [contract] per company be allowed? This rule served to put a number of companies at a disadvantage.”

The association president said that the award of the contracts to the Stewart’s Automotive Group affiliates would not have been allowed by an unbiased committee.