Botswana Police Service (BPS) seem determined to close citizens companies out of the multi-million pula safer cities deal and hand it all over to Chinese contractors. Indications, however are that the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Board (PPADB will have none of that.
In the latest instalment of the running power struggle between the two government department, PPADB recently slammed as “unprocedural” Botswana Police Services’ continued violation of its regulations in the multi-million safe city project.
In a letter addressed to one of the bidders, a copy of which has been seen by Sunday Standard, the PPADB did not have kind words for the men and women in blue warning that as the regulator “it has a responsibility to ensure maintenance of a level playing field in public procurement.”
It emerges in a separate document that Chaplin Solutions (Pty) Ltd and VTM Security (Pty) had lodged an appeal with PPADB regarding the tender for Supply, Delivery, Installation, Configuration and Commissioning of Additional Cameras and LTE System to the existing Safer City Solution for Botswana Police Services.
The raging war of words between PPADB and Botswana Police Services over the safer city tender which has been cancelled several times comes on the heels of complaints by members of the public who have questioned the quality of cameras already installed in Gaborone and citizen contractors who want in on the plum deal.
According to the letter dated 18th January 2022, the PPADB informed the managing director of VTM Security that, “the Board at its sitting of the 13th January 2022 upheld your complaint regarding Tender for the supply, Delivery, Installation, Configuration and Commissioning of Additional Cameras and LTE System to the existing Safer City Solution for Botswana Police Service; Tender No. Serv 5/2/1 (II).”
The PPADB explained that the complaint was upheld on the basis that the addition violated PPADB Circular No 1 of 2020 titled “Guidance regarding shortcomings in tender documents that can be addressed through addendum and those that require tender cancellation.”
The Board further resolved to cancel the tender on the basis that: ITT was flawed as it did not provide clearly defined boundaries for the areas of coverage.
“Listing the areas without maps is not enough as DSM does not have some of the maps in the list, for example, the malls (the maps available are for several commercial plots that the malls are on and BPS ought to have indicated which plots the network should cover) and Kgale Hill (DSM has a map of farm 9-KO that Kgale Hill is within and not of just Kgale Hill as stated in the ITT-Invitation To Tender),” PPADB said.
The Board further stated that, “There is a need for a common understanding between the PE and the bidders of the areas to be covered to ensure that the bidder proposes a solution that meets the Procuring Entity (PE’s) expectation.”
Without clear boundaries, the PPADB said, it would be impossible to fairly compare the proposed solutions during evaluation and furthermore, during implementation, BPS (Botswana Police Services) might find that the network does not cover the intended area as there was no defined area to cover to start with.
“Further PPAD Regulation 73 (2) requires that terms of reference for the procurement of services should contain a clear, unambiguous and precise description of the services required,” reads the letter.
Consequently, PPADB said, “any procurement with an ambiguous scope violates this provision and the Board has a responsibility to ensure maintenance of a level playing field in public procurement hence the conclusion that the tender ought to be cancelled.”
According to the letter, Maps were issued without an addendum which was unprocedural. “The maps were not in line with the ITT and were also not readable,” reads the letter.
The document also states that the tender was floated with a Works Code that did not have a Grade and later the Grade was introduced by an addendum which is not in line with PPADB Circular No 1 of 2020 titled” Guidance regarding shortcomings in tender documents that can be addressed through addendum and those that require tender cancellation.”
The tension between PPADB and Botswana Police Service has been festering for months.
While the BPS wanted to reserve the P300 million tender for its preferred Chinese contractors, the PPADB insisted that it should be unbundled and opened up to citizen contractors.
The PPADB insisted that out of the P300 million, P160 million should be subcontracted to citizen owned companies.
Following pressure from citizen- owned companies seeking a share of the P300 million tender awarded to Huawei Botswana Technologies, PPADB instructed the BPS to unbundle the project and open it up to tendering while the BPS insisted on direct appointment of the tender to the Chinese company which would result in local companies being ‘closed out.’
When the project commenced with cameras installed in Gaborone and Francistown, Huawei subcontracted only one local company identified as ICT Dynamix and later when it emerged that there were plans to rollout the project to some parts of the country, some local companies showed interest in participating in the project and called for an open tender.
Responding to Sunday Standard queries last year, PPADB spokesperson, Charles Keikotlhae explained that the PPAD Board, at its sitting of 24th June 2021 approved the Botswana Police Service (BPS)’s request to cancel the tender for Supply, Delivery, Installation, Configuration and Commissioning of Additional Cameras and LTE System to the Existing Safer City Solution for Botswana Police Service. Tender No. Serv 5/2/1 (1) as the tender was non-responsive.
“A its sitting of the 15th July 2021, the Board did not approve the BPS’ request to re-tender for the above-mentioned services (i.e. tender in question) by inviting Huawei Botswana, Hiwing Mechanical and Electrical Technologies Corp LTD and ICT Dynamix as the initial approval of the use of direct appointment method was for Huawei and ICT Dynamix only,” said Keikotlhae. He added that, “The Board, having noted that a new party (Hiwing Mechanical and Electrical Technologies) to the initial JV approved by the Board, was now being introduced, withdrew its approval of the direct appointment method of Huawei and ICT Dynamix and advised BPS to submit an appropriate request before the Board to progress the procurement.”
Keikotlhae says at its sitting of the 29th July 2021, the Board rejected the request by BPS for the use of the direct appointment method of procurement for the Supply, Delivery, Installation, Configuration and Commissioning of Additional Cameras and LTE System to the Existing Safer City Solution for Botswana Police Service by inviting Huawei Technologies Botswana (Pty) Ltd, ICT Dynamix (Pty) Ltd and Hiwing Mechanical & Electrical Technologies Corp.
“The Board did not approve the request as the BPS had not advanced justifiable reasons warranting the use of the method and BPS was advised to open the tender,” said Keikotlhae.
Sunday Standard also sought to know why the tender cited as PPADB 0/5/2-1-1) for re-tender/ direct appointment of Huawei Technologies Botswana ICT Dynamix and Hiwing Mechanical Technologies which was submitted on different dates being 12/07/2021 and 26/07/2021for the supply, delivery, installation and configuration and commissioning of additional cameras and LTE system to the existing safer city solutions for the Botswana Police was not approved.
Asked if the submission by BPS to PPADB dated 26/07/2021 emanated from or is tied/related to the Board’s decision taken on 12/07/2021 in which it withdrew and set aside the direct appointment of the above companies for the same project, and if the answer to this question is in the affirmative what is it that Botswana Police Service failed to do that resulted in the tender not being approved, Keikotlhae said, “Yes, the chronology provided under question 1 demonstrate how the two requests are related / tied to each other. It is worth noting the Board has never approved / rejected the tender for Supply, Delivery, Installation, Configuration and Commissioning of Additional Cameras and LTE System to the Existing Safer City Solution for Botswana Police Service Tender No. Serv 5/2/1 (1).”
He said what was considered and approved by the Board was the use of the Direct Appointment Method of Procurement as follows; The Board at its sitting of 8th January 2021 approved the use of the Direct Appointment Method of Procurement by inviting Huawei and ICT Dynamix for a three-year framework contract to Supply, Deliver, Install, Configure and Commission additional cameras and associated accessories for the expansion of Safer City solution at an estimated cost of P300 million.
“The Board however resolved that out of the P300 million, an estimated P160 million should be subcontracted to citizen owned companies,” revealed Keikotlhae.
While immediate request for responses from BPS and Huawei were not available, it is understood that Huawei Botswana Technologies built the system in such a way that only its preferred local contractors could be able to expand and the system hence BPS is unable to open up the tender for other bidders.
