PETALING JAYA: The malpractices highlighted in the Auditor-General's report keep repeating because of inadequate planning in procurement, poor drafting of specifications and lack of monitoring and evaluation, said Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (Ideas).
To address this, Ideas chief executive officer Wan Saiful Wan Jan has suggested that curbing political interference and using open tender systems would help in plugging the inefficiencies in government procurement which has resulted in millions of ringgit being wasted.
He cited examples in the 2012 AG report which had resulted in wasteful spending, such as the 20 wall clocks which were bought by for RM3,810 each when it cost RM100 each and the three A4 size scanners bought for RM14,760 each which was supposed to cost RM200 each.
He said Ideas was now conducting a study on transparency in how government agencies and department carry out their procurement.
"These problems are repeated because there are inadequate procurement planning, poor drafting of specifications, insufficient use of competitive tenders and lack of monitoring and evaluation.
“Having more comprehensive transparency measures such as addressing political interference and the use of open tenders as opposed to direct negotiation practices would help address the inefficiencies of our current procurement system.
“I also feel that there need to be transparent disclosure of procurement planning, and non-performing contractors and suppliers.
"Taking best practices from around the world would mean allowing outside observers, such as representatives from the Auditor General’s Office, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and relevant business or non-government organisations to attend procurement board meetings,” said Wan Saiful in a statement.
Wan Saiful applauded the continued efforts by Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang for his thorough and dedicated work.
“It is unfortunate that these facts are reported year after year, when in fact immediate action should be taken to avoid this from recurring,” he said.
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