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Categories: Finance

$30 M SECONDARY ROADS BOBOL

MORE than $30 million in bid-rigging, price-fixing and collusion led to the recent shut down of Secondary Roads Rehabilitation and Improvement Company Ltd. (SRRIC).

Of the $62 million spent over the past two years on road works, almost half were tied up in contract rackets, whistleblowers are claiming.

Informed workers exposed the corruption to prominent national officials, including Procurement Regulator Beverly Khan, the Ministry of Works and Transport, and the Police Service’s White Collar Crime Unit.

After months of inaction by the authorities, the Cabinet recently folded up the company, saying it was irrelevant.

But in the 2023-2024 Budget, Finance Minister Colm Imbert said SRRIC would carry out 306 road projects in the fiscal year.

The Government had previously removed the Board of Directors, which Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley said was done because of the winding up of the company.

SRRIC was given a $100 million capitalisation when it was set up in June 2022, and another $100 million was allocated in the 2023-2024 Budget.

The whistleblowers said that identified contracts were inflated by between 50 per cent 70 per cent, and, in a few cases, up to 100 per cent.

Fingers were pointed at two specific company officials.

Contractors and the particular company officials were accused of “stealing taxpayers’ money.”

“These ill practices continue despite the requirements of the procurement law,” the corruption-busters said.

Contractors were paid the full bid sum for certain incomplete projects, the informants stated.

It was claimed that paper companies were set up to submit straw bids.

The company also paid more than the market price for asphalt, it was alleged.

The workers said the corrupt practice of price-fixing and other forms of bobol started when SRRIC was a unit under the Ministry of Rural Development and Local Government.

The company was placed under the Ministry of Works and Transport in March 2023.

The informants said they sent details of contract irregularities and a list of companies allegedly involved in contract fixing.

Several contracts were awarded on the basis of sole-select.

The Ministry of Finance later conducted an audit into the company.

Experts in the construction industry said that the watered-down procurement law makes it easier for financial wrongdoing to take place in the awarding of public contracts.

With the shutting down of SRRIC, more than 25 workers have lost their jobs.

Ken Ali

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