| Transparency International Guyana Inc (TIGI) has reiterated its call for the establishment of the Public Procurement Commission to aid in the fight against corruption.TIGI’s President, Anand Goolsarran, has been nominated by the Alliance for Change (AFC) to serve on that body and according to him should this be accepted,Cheap Huarache Shoes For Women, he would have to resign from TIGI.TIGI President, Anand GoolsarranHe said that it would constitute a conflict of interest for him to be President of TIGI as well as be on the Procurement Commission“I can’t be a part of a Non Government Organization looking at corruption and be part of an outfit that serves to bring down the perception.”Goolsarran believes that he would be a good candidate to serve on that body. He said that given his expertise as a former Auditor General as well as a member of the United Nations Board of Auditors, “I am well equipped to serve on that body; I will have to weigh things carefully but obviously serving in that body would be within my level of expertise.”Goolsarran said, too, that should he accept the nomination he would also have to stop writing his weekly column ‘Accountability Watch.’The establishment of the Public Procurement Commission has been long in the making and emanates from a 2001 constitutional reform process.Over the years both Government and opposition have been in disagreement with the names identified as persons to serve on the body as well as the non submission of names.This past week the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) which is the body tasked with vetting and approving the names for the Commission, met and started the process.The AFC, more recently tied its support for the Anti Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Bill to the establishment of the Procurement CommissionDiscussions were stalled for some time; the People’s Progressive Party/Civic,Andy Greene Jersey, to date, has not submitted its nominees.On November 25,New York Islanders Gear, last, members of the Public Accounts Committee decided that it was time to move forward. At the meeting, they discussed the criteria and process of assessing applicants for senior posts in the Audit Department and the Public Procurement Commission.According to the PAC Chairman, Carl Greenidge,Nike Air Max 2018, the Presidential Advisor on Empowerment, Odinga Lumumba, attempted to continue the suspension of discussions on the PPC. A call was then made by Trevor Williams of the AFC, to simply vote on the names received by the Committee thus far.Members of the Opposition coalition,Adidas Shoes On Sale Cheap, A Partnership For National Unity (APNU) also supported the call to move forward.APNU’s Volda Lawrence, who is the former Chairperson of that committee, later suggested that the Chairman be asked to undertake discussions with the three political parties in order to resolve the issue.While Greenidge agreed with the call for a resolution, he did not accept Lumumba’s suggestion for Government to introduce Cabinet’s no-objection clause.Greenidge then reminded members in attendance of Article 212 of the Constitution which details the structure of the Public Procurement Commission and made no provision for the “kind of Cabinet veto Lumumba sought on behalf of the PPP.”Greenidge said, “The matter would be best dealt with at the Plenary of the House.” He also recommended that the meeting focus on the specific tasks it had been assigned.The committee then agreed to discuss the process by which the nominees would be selected and the selection criteria weighed,Boston Bruins Gear, whether or not the People’s Progressive Party/Civic submitted its list of nominees, and leave for the moment the actual list of names. |
