Guyana’s procurement system is not only plagued by a culture of corrupt practices but also the acceptance of slapdash work provided by contractors. It is a culture that local financial analysts say the coalition Government must wage a war against.
It is in this vein that former Auditor General and Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran asserts that the Government must seek to implement a Debarment Committee which will blacklist companies that take on big projects and in turn, provide sloppy work. He said that the government had promised the implementation of this body since 2015 “but it continues to sit on its laurels while the wastage continues.”
Goolsarran argued that which such a Committee, there would be a change in the substandard performance proffered by some contracts. He said, too, that this is one of the sure ways to ensure companies bring themselves in line with international best practices and the country gets value for money.
Debarment mechanisms are practiced by various Caribbean countries such as Jamaica and international agencies such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Guyana’s laws also provide for the installation of a debarment committee but under the previous Government, this was never given priority.
The Guyana Standard understands that steps to put this committee in place have already been taken and it is expected to come on stream this year. But Goolsarran says he remains skeptical about this “renewed promise from the government” while noting that the same thing was said last year.
