Director -General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Engr .Emeka Ezeh has classified 80 per cent of contractors who do business with the federal government as rogue who are in the habit of tendering forged documents.
In an address at a forum of contractors, consultants and service providers of federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs in Abuja, Eze frowned at the ignoble practice, saying that as many as 156 such companies are now being prosecuted.
The worst culprits, he stressed, are local contractors, adding: “a lot of contractors, especially 80 per cent of the local ones are notorious for submitting fake documents when bidding for contracts.
“We see all manner of fake documents such as false Tax Clearance Certificate, PenCom Certificate of Compliance, false claim of personnel, false audited account and use of fake addresses and submission of fake bank statements.
“Currently, there are 156 companies being prosecuted because of this. There is not enough space in our prisons, to accommodate all these fraudulent activities by contractors, so this has to change.”
Ezeh said that the unscrupulous contractors deprived the nation of value-for-money service, reminding the contractors that although his office would encourage local contractors to bid for public jobs, but that he would not do business with any fraudulent companies.
The Nigerian public, according to the BPP boss, deserved the best of services and urged honest contractors to come forward and participate in bidding processes, especially as the federal government is determined to ensure an effective implementation of the 2014 federal budget.
According to him, the federal government has established a database with which his office could easily appraise submissions and fight against corruption in contract processes, saying that there is no going back in the procurement reforms of the present administration.
“We started the registration of all contractors, consultants and service providers in the country as part of BPP’s drive to reform the public procurement system for better monitoring and oversight of public procurement processes in the country.
“As at April 24, 2014, 1,495 companies have started the registration process. Out of that number, only 158 have completed their registration.
“By mid- June this year, any company that is not completely registered on our database cannot do business with any government MDA.”
