Ferizaj municipality favours 8 companies with hundreds of thousands of euros, gives no justification for legal violations

Eight private companies have been favoured by the Ferizaj municipality during 2016. Ferizaj's municipal administration has allowed these private companies to fail to carry out the Public Procurement Law.

The winnings of the tenders are forced to provide as guaranteeing the total 10 per cent of the tender.

This amount remains in state institutions as a guarantee from the bidders. It's confiscated if the private company doesn't do the work, according to the contract.

This violation had occurred in the Ferizaj municipality tenders, including asphalt and road expansion, as well as construction of schools. The total value of these projects exceeds the amount of 4m euros.

The Office of the General Auditor (ZAP) has criticised Ferizaj's municipal authorities for tolerating the winners of the tenders. Insander, through demand for access to public documents, has provided the names of companies and projects that are criticised by the ZAP public report.

Based on the Law on Public Procurement, Ferizaj municipal authorities were obliged by private companies to seek guarantees worth a total of 439 thousand and 713 euros. They didn't.

Companies had offered guarantees only for part of the tender insurance. They have offered testimony for only 126 thousand and 927 euros. Based on data from the Auditor's Office, the supervisors in the Ferizaj municipality have had to secure guarantees in time, on the day of the contract signing, for over 300 thousand euros.

The newspaper has requested answers from the Ferizaj municipality. They didn't want to answer.

Ferizaj's Procurement Office has initially stated that it is not fully informed of which tenders are criticised by ZAP.

Insander has later sent him the list of critical projects. They have not provided detailed answers to each case and have not confirmed whether they have taken any penalties against irresponsible companies.

Risks of Non-excusement

After the completion of the 2016 audit, audiences have warned the Ferizaj Town of the dangers of this legal offense. They have concluded that this may influence that the work is not done in time and in line with quality standards.

The Procuration Office in this municipality has deemed it a failure to comply with the tender criteria associated with the execution of the tender guarantee/security.

The fact that the execution insurance is not in line with the preamble terms of the tender file and specific terms of the contract increases the risk that the municipality will not be able to seized if the contract is not met by the economic operator”, the ZAP report said.

The Public Procure Law provides clear explanations regarding the offering of such guarantees.

Under the Procure Law, any contracting authority is obliged to collect evidence from the winning tender companies as ensuring the execution of the works, with the goal of full fulfillment of the contract.

The contractor is required by law, not later than the date of signing the contract, but to fulfill this obligation. The execution security is stopped by paying contracting authority for any losses that are due to full and due non-execution of controversial obligations on the part of contractors.

Based on the new ZAP report, Ferizaj municipal authorities have ignored audience recommendations. Auditors have again criticised “not to pay dues by”.

“Do not address most of the recommendations provided increase the risk of continuing to repeat the same weaknesses in the main city systems. Failure to address demand for improvements and repetition of recommendations results in continued efficiency and financial loss for the municipality”, the auditing report published this week says.

Ferizaj's suspicious tender

The newspaper Insider has analysed each case Ferizaj's municipality has been criticised by the General Auditor's Office. In most cases, it is observed by municipal authorities to enforce the Public Procure Law.

One of them was the project for “Asphalmation of the streets from the school-school Caucasus neighborhood in the village of Mirosale”.

The winner was announced as “Source-E”. The value of the contract between the company and the municipality exceeded 286 thousand euros.

The project's duration was in two years. The company was obliged to offer bail testimony in the amount of over 28,000 euros. He had offered proof of the guarantee for just 3 months or 3 grand and 579 euros, but would have to ensure for two years the project lasted.

The procurement office in Ferizaj's municipality has confirmed to the Inside that the tender insurance was not paid by this company on the day of the contract signing. Likewise, the same company had not been doing things in time.

The municipality had only extended the working hours.

“The execution security has continued until 31.12.2017... Where and the jobs are done”, the Procurement Office's response reads.

The paper tried to contact the company “Source E”, but contact was impossible.

The same tender was also forwarded with other legal violations.

The company “Source-E” was declared the winner in the wake of withdrawing from the tender of another company that had cheaper bids for the same project.

According to ZAP, the withdrawn company had had the bid of 266 thousand and 306 euros. This bid for 20,000 euros cheaper than the company “Source-E”, which has been declared winner.

The newspaper Insander has requested answers from the Ferizaj municipality as to why the company “Source E” was declared the winner despite its highest price. But municipal responsibilities have provided no answers to the issue.

The Ferizaj Procurement Office has shown neither the reason nor the name of the withdrawal company.

Legal Sins in Millions' Projects

The next project included in this list is the one for the asphalt of Greme-Burnik-Gachka Street.

The value of the project is about 1m and a half euros. The municipality had declared the company a winner “Excavator”.

Insander has contacted company officials “Excavator”. Its officials have sent a document that, according to them, testifies that the obligation for the entire project was carried out on the day of signing the contract. However, the General Auditor's Office, in a document that has offered to Insider, has shown that the guarantee of this company has been valid for only one year, not three years.

Another million-dollar project was for the expansion of the Komoglar road, Trsteinnik.

It was won by the “Bagher” company. Because the tender was worth over 1m euros, the company was obliged to offer bail testimony in the amount of 108 thousand euros. It had guaranteed the work for a one-year period worth 36 thousand euros. Not for another two years, which in euros is another 72 thousand euros by 10% of the tender.

The company “Bageri” has not yet responded to the newspaper's interest in why the security of the tender has not been paid.

It was similar in another tender, won by the company “Bagher”.

During 2016 this company had won the tender for road asphalt in the village of Bibai.

Only two months longer than for the road project in Rakaj, the winning project company “The road in the village of Bibaij” has provided guarantees. It was intended to provide guarantees of 31 thousand euros for the duration of three years. But it secured the works for only four months with the amount of 3 thousand and 500 and 34 euros.

Six other companies favoured by the Ferizaj Community

In the list of projects in which ZAP found obligations not met under the procurement law, the company that has offered the assurance of least insurance is the company “Begisoli”.

The road asphalt project in the village of “Rakaj” has been two years old, while Begisoara has offered guarantees for just two months to secure the tender.

In total, this tender weighed 129 thousand euros, while it was estimated to be obliged to provide guarantees of 12 thousand euros.

I offer a guarantee of the work for just two months, which in euros stands at 1,000 euros. But not for another year and ten months.

Insander contacted Beckyville. Company representative Majid Begil said he's guaranteed 10% of the insurance so there may be no time left.

For the tender for the road to Rakaj, I have paid the insurance. There's no way I'm not paid. It doesn't matter whether it's paid sooner or later, but it's paid”, he said, although the law must pay him on the day of signing the contract.

The other company tolerating from the Ferizaj Community was also “Strassen Tiebau” It was committed to providing guarantees of 22 thousand euros, guaranteed in only six months, totaling only 3 thousand and 740 euros. He had been declared the winner in the tender for asphalt of alleys in the village of Prelez of Mujaharers, a three-year-old project.

Similarly, the company “Linda”, which had won the tender for the asphalt of the alleys in the village of Guchka Epper. The tender was worth over 244 thousand euros.

The private company was obliged to provide guarantees in the amount of 24 thousand euros, guaranteed only one year or 8 thousand euros from 10%.

Similar actions towards the municipality produced two other winning tender companies.

The tender for “The construction of elementary school in the village of Komoglare”, at the value of 495 thousand and 761 euros, was won by the consortium “Beton & Cheteta”. They would have to offer the municipality guarantees at the value of 49 thousand euros. They had secured the works for only one year or 16 thousand euros of 10%.

While the tender for “Asphalmation of the road to the village of Dremek”, which was won by the consortium “Rean & Ledi-ing”, weighed 183 thousand and 89 euros. Calculating 10% of this amount, it turns out there were guarantees to the municipality worth 18 thousand euros. The winning companies had guaranteed work for only one year, or 6 thousand euros from the total tender. Obligations providing evidence for the three-year guarantee of what the project was, or another 12,000 euros, of 10%.

The newspaper Insider has sent questions to the official addresses of all companies deemed irresponsible by the Auditor's Office. But most of them have yet to explain why they have not paid the tender's security on the day of signing the contract.

The Ferizaj Town has done likewise. They haven't yet given answers to the question of why companies are allowed not to pay the guarantee on the day of signing the contract, but have tolerated irresponsible companies. /Insider. com