Earlier in the news, you heard from the Chamber of Commerce President. He and other members of the executive team held a media roundtable to discuss the Chamber's position on procurement reform. This follows the questionable procurement practices at the Ministry of Defense and the audit that is currently ongoing. The BCCI has provided GOB recommendations on how it can optimize its procurement system. But is the government willing to give it a try? Courtney Menzies was at the session today and has this story.
On June 29th, following the announcement of the audit currently being conducted on the Ministry of Defense, the BCCI wrote a letter to the Prime Minister with recommendations on reforming the government's payment and procurement processes. These recommendations were established on the basis of greater transparency, accountability, and oversight.
The suggestions included ensuring that tenders and contract awards were publicized, and strengthening the financial resources and independence of the Auditor General and Accountant General's offices.
The BCCI pointed out that GOB's public financial management framework is currently outdated and the last Auditor General's annual report was in 2017. Even so, the reports available point to many irregularities.
Moreover, the BCCI also suggested enhancing the Smart Stream platform with an integrated monitoring system to flag irregularities as well as ensure that there is an independent approval system.
And while these recommendations appear excellent on paper, is the government willing to implement them? BCCI's president explained that it's an ongoing struggle.
Giacomo Sanchez, President, BCCI
"It's an ever and ongoing struggle in that the frustrations that we as an advocacy organization the frustrations that we are faced with has to do with every time there's a new legislation and the legislation falls short of having something in there to make people accountable in the event that what the legislation sets out to accomplish isn't accomplished, that is where we fall short. So that is an ongoing frustration. And it's just a constant fight. Government is always looking at the Chamber as adversarial and each government that has come for the past 15, 20 years and that's not the case, it's just that we want better governance."
Jules Vasquez:
"Is it that these flag triggers were not built into the system for a specific reason?"
Giacomo Sanchez:
"I don't think it was intentional but there was no effort made to make corrections over time because it suits the users of the system."
And while the BCCI cannot force GOB to act, Councilor William Neal explained that they remain focused on advocating for policy changes and utilizing the media to garner support.
William Neal, Councilor, BCCI
"What we have done through our policy unit is actually look at the policies themselves and advocate for policy changes. That is an ongoing process and it's a slow process and yes there's not always the political will to actually bring that to bear. But I think it's important that one, as partners with the media for example, we utilize our strengths to actually dig deep and look at the policy and partner with the media and other social partners to bring that information into the public domain so that there's a greater conversation. Unless you have that conversation, the government pretends that the silent minority is actually, okay the old adage that they always have, this will blow over like a breeze in no time because there's not enough ground swell. I think we have been very consistent in our good governance advocacy and push and the documents reflect that that we continue to say the same things and it's whether the actors within the society actually come in support of what we're saying."
Still, if all that fails, will BCCI take to the streets? They say it's not that simple.
William Neal, Councilor, BCCI
"We been having that conversation especially of late, to see how you can actually get out into the streets and have people aware of what is happening and what action is required without it being politicized. Unfortunately that is the big challenge you have, the minute you hear oh this one is UDP or PUP or whatever. And that's why we have chosen to be grounded in policy to make sure what we're doing, we can stand behind."
Giacomo Sanchez, President, BCCI
"Do appreciate our constituents in terms of our membership is almost divided down the middle and so you won't get the kind of ground swell you would expect and that's just the reality in it and hence the reason we're grounded in policy rather than just emotional and wanting to get out into the streets."
But is it enough to remain in their lane of policy, or will they be forced to pound the streets? As it is, it has been 37 days since they sent their letter to the PM and there's been no response. But the BCCI's president says they're giving GOB more time-but when will their patience run out?
