Squeeze on cartels as public tenders watchdog tightens noose on brokers

The public procurement watchdog has set tough license terms for agents involved in State contracts in a shift aimed at weeding out graft.

Newly published guidelines by the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) show that procurement and asset disposal agents face stringent conditions to qualify for practice.

As part of the new rules, any person seeking registration as a procurement and asset disposal agent is required to apply to the PPRA director-general and pay Sh50,000 to be registered on the condition that she or he is a member of the Kenya Institute of Supplies Management; licensed by the Institute to practice in the practice year, and holds a degree or diploma from a recognised university or institution.

The new rules also set a mandatory requirement that an applicant for the role of procurement agent have practical work experience of not less than two years, of which six months should have been in Kenya.

Further, agents will be required to apply for annual licences at a fee of Sh5,000 detailing their specific places of business.

“By producing evidence satisfactory to the Authority that the applicant has paid the prescribed fee of Sh5,0000 for an annual practicing license; and by producing a copy of membership card and practice licence for the year of application issued by the Kenya Institute of Supplies Management” the PPRA further said in its new rules.

Consultancy services

The agents will have a choice of seven practice categories to be registered including procurement of goods, non-consultancy services, consultancy services, and works; warehousing, inventory and asset management; logistics management; contract management; assets disposal; procurement audit and compliance review; and procurement transaction advisory.

Procurement agents play a critical but sensitive role of purchases goods for a client or company. They are involved in preparing purchasing orders, requesting goods from suppliers with valued prices, negotiating business contracts with vendors, and providing information or updates on shipping.

This makes the agents important parties in ensuring fairness and transparency in public procurement through equity and cost-effectiveness.

 “Thus, a very high level of professionalism, expertise, competence, diligence, and integrity is required of the procuring or asset disposal agents” PPRA Director-General, Patrick Wanjuki said.

The new terms for contract agents add to a push by the Treasury to kick out crooks from public procurement systems.

In February this year, the Treasury rolled out a new online payment claims system that has disrupted cartels that have for long exploited suppliers and contractors through delayed approval of disbursements to solicit bribes.

An enhancement of the national Integrated Financial Management System (Ifmis) has shifted the management of purchase orders and invoices online in a bid to make the processing of payments to suppliers more efficient and transparent.

The enhanced system has removed human interaction and will enable suppliers at the national and county levels of government to get purchase orders generated from Ifmis through email.

Emails and text messages will also be sent to suppliers at various stages of the payment process after the delivery of goods and services to purchasing State entity is confirmed.

“Suppliers are now able to receive approved purchase orders through the supplier portal. They can schedule delivery and submit invoices after the delivery has been accepted,” Treasury Principal Secretary Julius Muia said.

This is expected to weed out fraudsters in payment of lucrative state tenders who often exploit suppliers in the guise of facilitating payments at various government offices.

“We are implementing a single software where all government purchases will be done on a single website portal. It will be a very competitive process where no one will know you in the procurement process,” Mr Muia said.

Audit trials

Ifmis was created to provide audit trails of all financial transactions with details of the person who logged in, the time, the computer used, and the action performed in a bid to end corruption in government contracts.

The system has, however, failed to seal all loopholes for corruption with mounting claims that it was at the centre of some of the largest sleaze syndicates to hit Kenya in recent years at the national and county levels. This has prompted anti-corruption crusaders to question its safeguards in guaranteeing accountability in public procurement.

Apart, from having all payment processing systems online, the Treasury also plans a virtual system that will process all public tenders and linked to the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) in a policy shift aimed at enhancing transparency and nabbing tax cheats.

The Treasury in August last year invited foreign and local firms to bid for installation of the e-procurement system.

It will be linked to the taxman, which has been pursuing suppliers earning billions of shillings from counties and State tenders without remitting their pound of flesh.

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