Dr Mambwe testifies of Dora’s instruction to re-enter bids
Written by Maluba Jere
From yesterday
Silwamba: Now, in P17 does Mr Mukupa talk about a joint venture or a company in South Africa participating in the process?
Dr Mambwe: No.
Judge Chitengi: The question I asked was did Mr Mukupa answer directly your concerns?
Dr Mambwe: Yes, he did separately.
Judge Chitengi: How?
Dr Mambwe: In an internal memo.
Silwamba: So P15 reflects the contents of a report you received?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: Please show the witness exhibit P9 and P10. Have you seen P9?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: What is it?
Dr Mambwe: It is an internal memo from the minister to myself.
Silwamba: What is the date?
Dr Mambwe: 5th January, 2009. The subject is evaluation of tender bid on evaluation of radar.
Silwamba: It was addressed to the permanent secretary. Were you still at the ministry?
Dr Mambwe: Yes, I was.
Silwamba: Read the contents.
Dr Mambwe reads the minister's memo.
Silwamba: Did you act on that?
Dr Mambwe: Yes, I did.
Silwamba: What did you do?
Dr Mambwe: I wrote to the director general ZNTB as in exhibit P10 informing him that the minister had directed that we re-tender the procurement of radars.
Silwamba: What is the date on P10?
Dr Mambwe: 6 January, 2009.
Silwamba: So, the following day you authored the letter?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: Please read the contents, first the addressee is...?
Dr Mambwe: The director general Zambia Public Procurement Authority, in order to ensure only manufacturers of radars and not middlemen...
Silwamba: Did you notify the minister that 'although you are instructing me to write, I have already sent a letter to the bidder'?
Dr Mambwe: It bothered me but the instruction was very straightforward...
Judge Chirwa: You wrote to the tender board, why didn't you mention that you had already written to the director general that you had written to the bidder?
Dr Mambwe: The director general directed me to write to the winner.
Judge Chirwa: Why didn't you write to him?
Dr Mambwe: According to procedure, I can only write to the director general after the instructions to tender because she just instructed me to write to the director general to re-enter the bids.
Judge Chirwa: I thought P9 is 5th January?
Dr Mambwe: Yes, my lord.
Silwamba: And the minister's letter to the director general is P20. Dated?
Dr Mambwe: 11 December.
Judge Chirwa: Would you not have told the minister that you had already written an offer letter to the bidder?
Dr Mambwe: My lord, the directive from my superior should be in writing or it would be insubordination...I didn't.
Judge Chitengi: Because you feared to be charged with insubordination?
Dr Mambwe: I had been directed.
Judge Hamaundu: Did it not bother you that the cancellation would have legal consequences?
Dr Mambwe: It did, but the tender was written by ZNTB so I had to write to them...Because the tender was outside me, it was done by ZNTB, I had to convey the directive and they would make a decision.
Silwamba: Please show him exhibit P18. Dr Mambwe you've seen exhibit P18?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: Who is the author?
Dr Mambwe: Myself, my lord.
Silwamba: The date?
Dr Mambwe: 7th January, 2009 my lord.
Silwamba: Who is the addressee?
Dr Mambwe: Dr Joshua Kaganja, Secretary to the Cabinet
Silwamba: The same reference number?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: Please read the contents.
Silwamba: And this letter was written on the 7th of January?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: A day after you had written to the tender board?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: My lord senior counsel Mr Kabimba advises me its 10:30.
The tribunal adjourns for 15 minutes
After the usual 15 minutes break, the tribunal resumes sitting.
Judge Chirwa: Yes, State Counsel.
Silwamba: Obliged my lord. Dr Mambwe, what prompted you to write P18?
Dr Mambwe: My lord, it was the reaction from the minute from the Secretary to the Cabinet, he wanted to be briefed on this tender.
Silwamba: And to support your contention in your letter, you enclose some documents?
Dr Mambwe: Yes, the report from the evaluation committee. Yes, I did.
Silwamba: At this stage, did you take time to study the report?
Dr Mambwe: Which one?
Silwamba: From the evaluation committee.
Dr Mambwe: Yes, I glanced through.
Silwamba: Reacting to the head of the civil service, you glanced through?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: On page two of that letter, I want you to look at paragraph five.
Dr Mambwe reads the paragraph in the letter.
Silwamba: Your position is that you rely on, you are referring to which people?
Dr Mambwe: The department of procurement.
Silwamba: In this particular tender, who was handling it?
Dr Mambwe: The department of procurement...
Silwamba: At this stage bring to your attention the new supplier named Selex?
Dr Mambwe: I don't understand.
Dr Mambwe then informs the tribunal that the Selex issue came about through correspondence from the managing director National Airports Corporation, responded to directive from Civil Aviation Department
Silwamba: Yes, that's the repair but we are talking about the procurement.
Dr Mambwe: This is mentioned in the minister's letter.
Judge Chirwa: To who?
Dr Mambwe: In the letter to the tender board and Selex was mentioned.
Silwamba: I was saying in terms of procurement, Selex was coming up for the first time as opposed to repairing?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: Did the procurement experts inform you that Selex and Thales were stiff competitors in this area?
Dr Mambwe: No, my lord.
Silwamba: My lord, with your leave, I would like to show the witness P11.
Judge Chitengi: Sorry Mr Silwamba, in this area you mean radar manufacturers?
Silwamba: Yes, my lord. Dr have you seen the letter?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: The date?
Dr Mambwe: 14 January, 2009.
Silwamba: The addressee?
Dr Mambwe: Dr E Mambwe, permanent secretary Ministry of Communications and Transport.
Silwamba: Read the subject and the first paragraph.
Dr Mambwe reads the first paragraph of the letter and Silwamba asks him to read the rest of the letter, which he does.
Silwamba: So Dr Mambwe can you confirm that by that letter, ZNTB found no compelling reason to cancel the tender?
Dr Mambwe: Correct.
Silwamba: In other words, they refused to cancel the tender?
Dr Mambwe: Correct.
Silwamba: To your knowledge, did they subsequently cancel the tender?
Dr Mambwe: I don't know.
Silwamba: On page three in paragraph two, Mr Kapitolo says the secretariat has verified bids submitted as well as from the Internet that Thales... This letter was addressed to you, did you go on the net to check on any of the bidders?
Dr Mambwe: No.
Silwamba: Can you confirm that none of your members of staff went on the net?
Dr Mambwe: No.
Silwamba: It's a pity because if you had gone, you would have known that Thales has allegations.
Dr Mambwe: No I didn't get that information.
Silwamba: Remember when I showed you P21?
Dr Mambwe: Yes, my lord.
Silwamba: Which refers the letter of 13 May, 2008, you still confirm that you are not the author of that letter?
Dr Mambwe: No.
Silwamba: You recall yesterday I asked that you had made inquiries and you refused?
Dr Mambwe: I said I can't remember who authored the letter which made inquiries to the suppliers?
Silwamba: Are you confirming that you are the author of the letter dated 13 May, 2008?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: Do you recall the contents?
Dr Mambwe: Unless I look at it.
Silwamba: But you can confirm that you never talked about making inquiries?
Dr Mambwe: I don't recall.
Silwamba: Please show the witness exhibit P1. Dr Mambwe you told the tribunal yesterday that you saw that document for the first time?
Dr Mambwe: Yes.
Silwamba: Did you see a draft?
Dr Mambwe: I don't recall
Silwamba: Did you see any internal memo regarding this MoU?
To be continued
No comments:
Post a Comment