‘Where’s the CAT in Penang govt?’
An article in RPK’s Malaysia Today alleges that the Penang government has awarded a flood mitigation project to a company via direct negotiations, breaching its policy of Competency, Accountability and Transparency.
P Ramani, FMT
The Penang state government has been accused of abusing its own tender process in awarding a contract worth almost RM7 million to build a flood retention wall in Bukit Mertajam.
The state government which advocates Competency, Accountability and Transparency (CAT), is accused of awarding the project, which include renovating the drainage system in Jalan Kampung Baru, in a guided and open tender process.
In an article posted in blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin’s Malaysia Today portal, it is claimed that in the open tender process introduced by the state government, an in-house consultant will be appointed before the tender is implemented.
Malaysia Today also posted documents pertaining to the contract, saying there was a Selangor-based company which initially tendered for the project but was rejected on two grounds.
The first was that the company came under category G4, which disallowed the company from working on a project worth more than RM3 million. Second reason was that the company was not a local Penang-based firm.
On that note, another company tendered for the project. The tender amount offered by the firm stood at RM6,913, 896, which is RM33,223 lower than the price tag given by the state authorities.
The company came under category G6, which allowed it to work on projects worth not more than RM10 million. However, the article claimed that the second company received the project via direct negotiations.
