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Following is question by the Hon Sin Chung Kai and a written reply by the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, Mr John Tsang, in the Legislative Council today (January 18):
Question:
Government departments commission companies to conduct pilot projects to establish the details and feasibility of major information technology (IT) projects before implementing them. Some members of the trade have told me that these companies, because of their involvement in such pilot projects, will become very familiar with the requirements of government departments and be considered as possessing the relevant experience. Sometimes they may even advise the authorities concerned on the appropriate technologies to be adopted. As a result, they have an edge when bidding for the related IT project. In this regard, will the Government inform this Council of:
(a) the number of complaints received by the authorities in each of the past three years alleging that certain bidders had obtained a competitive edge because they had conducted the pilot projects; the procedure for handling these complaints and their results;
(b) the number of IT service contracts, awarded in each of the past three years by government departments, in respect of which pilot projects had been conducted and, among these contracts, the number of those awarded to the companies which had conducted the related pilot projects; and
(c) the mechanism and measures to ensure that all bidders have equal opportunities to win IT service contracts?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) In the past 3 years, two anonymous complaints were received in 2005 alleging that certain bidder had obtained a competitive edge because they had conducted the pilot project.
According to the established procedure, if a complaint is received, the procuring department concerned is required to deal with the complaint in an impartial and timely manner and bring the complaint to the attention of the relevant tender board. In general, a formal reply will be provided to the complainant within ten days after the investigation. An interim reply should be sent to the complainant if a substantive reply cannot be issued shortly. Improvements will be made if there is scope for doing so upon investigation of the complaint.
For the two complaints mentioned above, they were related to the same procurement project. Investigation was conducted and it was found that the procurement was carried out in a fair and open manner and that the supplier who had conducted the pilot had not obtained any competitive edge over the other bidders. In fact, the contract was not awarded to the supplier who had conducted the pilot.
(b) We have awarded only one IT service contract in the past 3 years in respect of which a pilot project had been conducted. This contract was not awarded to the company which had conducted the related pilot project.
(c) To ensure all bidders have equal opportunities to compete for government contracts, including IT contracts, procuring departments are required to observe the following guidelines:
- all necessary information should be provided in the tender documents to assist the bidders to prepare their tenders;
- tender specifications should not be prepared, adopted or applied with a view to or with the effect of creating obstacles to international trade or to competition amongst potential tenderers;
- tender specifications should be worded in easily comprehensive general terms based on functional and performance characteristics of the products required, and not around the technical data of a certain model of the products to be purchased and should avoid over-prescription of requirements;
- all potential bidders should be given the same information for them to prepare their bids; and
- careful consideration should be given as to whether the consultant or the contractor which has acted as Government's consultant for a project or been a contractor for a pilot project (the firm concerned) should be debarred from participating in the subsequent implementation tender for the procurement of any goods and/or service arising out of the consultancy or pilot project. If for various reasons that the firm concerned should not be debarred, procuring departments should review and be satisfied that the tender document is objective and unbiased having regard to the role and recommendation of the firm concerned and must also ensure that all relevant information made available to and provided by the firm concerned will equally be made available to all potential bidders.
Ends/Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Issued at HKT 15:01
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