Government Loses US$4Million in Fertiliser Scam – UPND

10/06/2015

LUBINDA, MWALITETA at Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia

UPND:

Government has lost US$4million in a tender for the supply and delivery of fertiliser raw materials to produce compound D Fertiliser for the 2015/2016 farming season.

In a procurement exercise that appears to be rife with corruption, the Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ) has dubiously awarded a US$64, 433, 500 tender to Neria’s Investments Limited, Nyiombo Investments and Zambia Fertiliser Limited, disregarding the bid by Greenbelt Fertilisers Limited (GBL) which was US$ 4 million less.

Sources at both NCZ and Zambia Public Procurement Authority (ZPPA) have revealed that GBL has launched an appeal with ZPPA against the preliminary award citing contravention of the Public procurement Act.

In GBL tendered lots, the total tendered amount was at US$42,040,000.00 against the competitors who were awarded at a value of US$46,917,000.00.

According to authentic correspondence in our possession signed by NCZ Procurement Manager Mr. Edmond Sakala, NCZ intends to award the tender for the supply and delivery of raw materials to Neria’s Investments Limited at US$46, 480, 000, Nyiombo Investments at US$6, 865, 500, and Zambia Fertiliser Limited at US$11, 088, 000.

But in its appeal letter leaked by officials at ZPPA, GBL contends that NCZ erred by its decision to award the bid to the trio and contravened section 53 of the Public Procurement Act no. 12 of 2008 which provides that “a procuring entity shall, within seven days of awarding a contract, prepare a notice indicating the best evaluated bidder and value of the proposed contract, and send the notice to all bidders who submitted bids”.

“It is contended that this provision was contravened due to the fact that Nitrogen Chemicals did not evaluate the bid from GBL but dismissed the bid on frivolous ground that there was a typographical error which could have easily been rectified,” read the appeal in part.

The bid from GBL shows that its bid was the lowest priced and would have saved Government the sum of more than US$4, 000, 000, which qualified as one of the best evaluated bids.

SOURCE : UPND