We don’t want contractors in our premises -BPP

By Egena Sunday Ode

The Bureau of Public Procurement, BPP, has said it does not want contractors flooding its premises, as such practice which had persisted over the years had mounted pressures on staff and hindered flow of activities.
According to the agency, the stoppage of unwarranted contractors’ visit to the premises is part of the measures to ensure serenity at the agency and enhance better and a more efficient service delivery system.
The plan was announced by Olusegun Omotola, the outgoing acting Director General of the BPP, while handing over to Adedokun Adebowale, the new Director General.
The Bureau also decried the influx of contractors who hitherto visit the “Bureau to follow-up on requests for no-objection submitted for the Bureau’s consideration”
“Arising from the influx of contractors and other transactional visitors, the Bureau had had the picture of a market place.”
BPP stated that the stoppage has ensured that the “Bureau now enjoys the serenity expected in a serious-minded office”
The new DG, Adebowale, while taking over, promised to further strengthen the Bureau’s service delivery system by introducing an electronic procurement system that will reduce, if not completely eliminate physical contacts and other challenges faced by the organization in the discharge of its mandate.
Recall that the BPP was established in June, 2007, following the enactment of the enabling Act, which was signed by late President Umar Musa Yar’Adua.
The organization’s main mandate is the ensure transparency in federal government public procurement plans
“Under my watch, the BPP will becomes an agency of enabler of sustainable development and as soon as we settle down to work, we must deliver to this government, an electronic procurement system
He assured that the agency will develop policies that are tailored that are sectors specific, such as women empowerment, youths empowerment and policies to ease the challenges of people with disabilities.
“We cannot continue to blame agencies for none performance, but as a regulator, we will not take anything for granted, but we will give them the right atmosphere to survive, excel and give the federal government of Nigeria, results.
“We will work with the 36 states because there is no way we can succeed on our mandate in procurement at the federal level, if we do not build and institutionalize procurement, in collaborations with the 36 states.
The DG who had been a pioneer staff of the agency since it’s inception in 2007, noted that “BPP is not just a cost saving organization, it is the tool for economic growth. If we get procurement right, we will get it right for this country. we will also deliver timely, within the confines of our mandate.
“Please, take note, we will not dabble into the affairs of MDAs anymore, we hope they take responsibilities for their actions going forward.
He however assured that the agency has the right tools to bring to bare, all provisions in budget implementation, even as he also assured that the agency will play its roles in the fulfillment of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the current administration
BusinessDay gathered that the agency now has a new policy that enhances turn-around time for review operations, which the new DG promised to further strengthen to ensure timely delivery
The new policy also will reduce if not totally eliminate the large number of requests with which the Bureau had been inundated,
The new DG said the agency will actualise ongoing digitization plans for the Bureau’s operation, which hitherto had been stalled by lack of funds.
“There is no gainsaying that digitization will engender speedier service delivery. In any event, with some higher level of motivation to staff, the turn-around time for treatment and production of Due Process letters and Certificates of “No Objection” for request received by the Bureau has greatly improved from three months (as it used to be, to a maximum of one month).
Other areas of concentration include issues of frivolous approval for Restricted Tendering that are not in alignment with the provisions of the Public Procurement Act 2007.
The new DG also promised to ensure that procuring entities embrace open competitive bidding, as against the previous practices that encouraged cases of “ Special or Restricted Tendering”