A non-governmental organisation, Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC) has called for strict compliance with provisions of the procurement by ministries, departments and agencies of the Ekiti state government.
The senior program officer of the group, Ife Olatunji-David who spoke in Ado Ekiti, state capital during a five-day sub-national public procurement boot camp organised by the centre in partnership with MacArthur Foundation, said ensuring adherence to the law would guarantee inclusion in the procurement process.
Stakeholders in the procurement process including the officials of the Ekiti State Bureau of Public Procurement, Heads of MDAs, Civil Society Organizations and media executives were in attendance.
Olatunji-David said procurement officers in the MDAs have a responsibility to ensure compliance with regulatory procurement frameworks towards ensuring delivery of quality projects.
She lamented that several civil servants are not fully conversant with laid down processes in the award and execution of public contracts, hence, the urgent need for MDAs to understand the procurement laws.
She advocated transparency and accountability in the implementation of projects, saying such will enhance the trust and confidence of citizens in government.
Also, the communication officer of PPDC, Nnenna Eze said that the boot camp was organised to sensitise the public on procurement laws, transparency and accountability practices, monitoring and evaluation of public projects.
She explained that the programme would give participants a better understanding and synergy in the procurement process and promote transparency and openness in public expenditure at the sub-national level.
She called on citizens to take advantage of the Freedom of Information Act to get access to public records and information, especially on procurement and project implementation.
This, she said, will promote transparency and accountability, build public trust and improve public service because when governments realise that their activities are subject to scrutiny they become more circumspect.
In her submission, a Director in the Ekiti State Bureau of Public Procurement, Mrs Bolanle Oladele stated that procurement processes have become more open and transparent since the state joined the Open Government Partnership.
She noted that the state government has been running open governance with the development of an institutionalised portal where all procurement processes were accessible to build public trust and confidence.
Speaking, a participant from women in the business sector, Ololade Oladipo commended the group for the seminar which she said was educating towards inclusion and building stakeholders’ capacity to follow up on the project being awarded in the society by the government.
“In the seminar, we are made to know that women can have access to these contracts too, that is, the contract should not be awarded only to men, women too should be involved,” she said.
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