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From Okwe Obi, Abuja
The Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), has warned that defaulters of procurement code of conduct would be dealt with.
BPP’s Director General, Adebowale Adesokan, handed down the warning at the Procurement Evolution Day, yesterday in Abuja.
He declared that the government would not hesitate to blacklist erring contractors, given the non-interference of President Bola Tinubu.
Already, Adesokan disclosed that the government had significantly reduced unnecessary bottlenecks while preserving transparency and accountability.
According to him, the government has equally strengthened compliance enforcement, pointing out that reform without accountability cannot succeed.
He explained that the aim is to ensure that procurement processes remain compliant, responsive, efficient and capable of supporting timely project delivery.
He said: “Public procurement must be governed not only by rules but also by consequences for violations.
“We have, therefore, reinforced monitoring mechanisms and compliance reviews across procuring entities.
“The government has significantly reduced unnecessary bottlenecks while preserving transparency and accountability.
“The objective is simple. Procurement processes must remain compliant, but they must also be responsive, efficient and capable of supporting timely project delivery.”
He reminded participants that “procurement reform is not an end in itself. It is a means to an end – a Nigeria where public resources are used judiciously, where citizens trust their government and where development accelerates because corruption is curtailed.
The paper presenter, Emeka Ezeh, suggested that the government should embark on massive sensitization programmes to address pit holes across all the geopolitical zones.
Ezeh, who spoke on From Policy to Law: Institutionalising the Bureau of Public Procurement under the PPA 2007,’ also suggested training and conversion programme across all Minstries, Department and Agencies (MDAs).
He reiterated the importance of engagement with civil society organizations; retreat for permanent secretaries and CEOs of federal institutions/accounting officers; and collaboration with anti-graft agencies.
Going forward, he demanded an amendment of the law to bring back the President as the Chair of the Council; incorporate all amendments of the Act in the Finance Acts into the Principal Act, create zonal of fes of the BPP to track and monitor both the compliance to procedures and the implementation of the projects, and to ensure that staff of the zones have the capacity to do the job effectively.
