Tender grabbing and consequences
Monday, 12 April 2010
GOVERNMENT spending in the public sector or execution of developmental activities generates on a large scale jobs, income and money flow in the economy of Bangladesh. Thus, anything that disrupts or frustrates the process related to calling of tenders or issuing work orders by the government does have significant retarding influence on the economy. The implementation of the current fiscal year's annual development programme (ADP) can be considered here. According to media reports, the implementation of ADP programmes is trailing behind the projected level even after nine months of the current fiscal, notwithstanding the firm promises that were made at the time of announcement of the national budget about gearing up efforts on all fronts for expediting the pace of execution of ADP projects.
There is a plethora of unsorted reasons of the past that hamper the ADP implementation process. Thus, bureaucratic sloth and related inefficiencies and neglect are all there. But a new dimension in the form of tender grabbing has been added this fiscal. Youngsters, claiming themselves to be the members of the student and youth fronts of the ruling party, have been noted over the past several months for engaging in violence to ensure that they and none others can drop tender bids. Sometimes rival groups -- also reported to be belonging to the same party -- are found in the tender grabbing, triggering the worst kind of violence. The Prime Minister (PM) took early steps to distance her party and government from such groups. She has clearly been stating that her government would not own such elements or take responsibility for their activities. The home minister on her part expressed similar determination. But tender grabbing activities, after a lull for some time, now appears to be as bad as ever.
It should be obvious how public sector investments and developmental activities now stand badly affected by this factor alone. In many cases, tender bids had to be cancelled and re-scheduled, delaying work. Even the quality of work would be in doubt in cases where the tender grabbers succeeded in getting selected through muscle power. Inexperienced and mal-intentioned parties cannot be expected to do good work. Therefore, public resources now run the risks of being grossly misused. Another ill consequence of this state of affairs is that genuine business operators will feel very aggrieved and alienated; their inability to bid and the consequent exclusion from the bidding process will only tend to lend credence to allegations that business is too difficult to conduct without muscle power and political identities and supports. A demoralised business community under such circumstances is the last thing that this government could want specially when its top managers have been saying that they are for accelerated economic growth by tapping the enthusiasm and potentials of the private sector who have proved their merit and abilities in different sectors over the years.
The latest is that a stern message has gone from the top to the police to absolutely show no favour to tender grabbers, notwithstanding their political identities. One would only hope that such directives would be actually enforced this time. For the ones in the past were flouted casually. Therefore, the challenge for the top leadership in the government is to monitor and ensure the implementation of their orders in this regard.
There is a plethora of unsorted reasons of the past that hamper the ADP implementation process. Thus, bureaucratic sloth and related inefficiencies and neglect are all there. But a new dimension in the form of tender grabbing has been added this fiscal. Youngsters, claiming themselves to be the members of the student and youth fronts of the ruling party, have been noted over the past several months for engaging in violence to ensure that they and none others can drop tender bids. Sometimes rival groups -- also reported to be belonging to the same party -- are found in the tender grabbing, triggering the worst kind of violence. The Prime Minister (PM) took early steps to distance her party and government from such groups. She has clearly been stating that her government would not own such elements or take responsibility for their activities. The home minister on her part expressed similar determination. But tender grabbing activities, after a lull for some time, now appears to be as bad as ever.
It should be obvious how public sector investments and developmental activities now stand badly affected by this factor alone. In many cases, tender bids had to be cancelled and re-scheduled, delaying work. Even the quality of work would be in doubt in cases where the tender grabbers succeeded in getting selected through muscle power. Inexperienced and mal-intentioned parties cannot be expected to do good work. Therefore, public resources now run the risks of being grossly misused. Another ill consequence of this state of affairs is that genuine business operators will feel very aggrieved and alienated; their inability to bid and the consequent exclusion from the bidding process will only tend to lend credence to allegations that business is too difficult to conduct without muscle power and political identities and supports. A demoralised business community under such circumstances is the last thing that this government could want specially when its top managers have been saying that they are for accelerated economic growth by tapping the enthusiasm and potentials of the private sector who have proved their merit and abilities in different sectors over the years.
The latest is that a stern message has gone from the top to the police to absolutely show no favour to tender grabbers, notwithstanding their political identities. One would only hope that such directives would be actually enforced this time. For the ones in the past were flouted casually. Therefore, the challenge for the top leadership in the government is to monitor and ensure the implementation of their orders in this regard.