KDI: “Ping-pong” with a 5 million tender with Prizren Hospital

The Kosovo Democratic Institute (KDI), through a media conference today, has presented findings from the analysis of the tendering process for the construction of the “Mother Hospital and Childiu” in the Prizren municipality, conducted by the Kosovo University Clinical Hospital Service.

The report says that as a result of numerous complaints regarding the process of assessment of this tender, KDI has thoroughly analysed the actions of institutions involved in this process (SHSKUK, OSHP, KRPP, AKK) to see if they were in line with legal and professional responsibilities.

In this process, KDI was faced with a lack of transparency on the part of USKKUK, where documents required on September 18, 2020 to analyse this tender were secured on December 7, 2020, and only after the intervention of the ombudsman.

“KDI estimates that Article 59.4 has been violated in this procedure. Public Procure Law (LPP) and Article 41.1, 41.3.5 and 41.5 of the Public Procureing Rules and Guides, since the winning economic operator Heitrom] had not met the demand of the tender file on economic and financial conditions.

The Tent's file has been requested by the Annual Tax Declaration delivered to the Kosovo Tax Administration for the last three years fiscally completed from the date of announcement for the contract, worth no less than 8,000.00 $”, the report said.

The report reportedly said that the Tent File was taxed to declare financial circulation in Kosovo, and no other acceptable options were defined as evidence of the financial circulation of economic operators.

<x) The KPS was reconciled to the opinion of the engaged research expert, saying that “ferata did not meet the compatibility criteria”, OSHP, had eventually made a decision to support the USKKUK's decision to continue giving the contract.

KDI has found that USKKKKU has been violating the LPP after the contract was signed 6 days after the contract was announced, while according to the LPP, Article 26 points 4.1 signing public contracts becomes at least ten (10) days after the release of the contract was made by”.

Even KCPP, which the tender operator was directed to with a request for legal interpretation, had not acted in transparency, not publishing this legal interpretation on its website, which is defined by law.

KDI had found that the contract-paid company in its bid had only handed over confirmation by the Constitutional Court, the Department of Economic Affairs of the Founding Court in Pristina that the company was not bankrupt or in the process of bankruptcy but had not handed over the Certificate from the Foundation Court to the Department for Criminal Crimes that the company in question had not been convicted of carrying out a criminal or civil act over the past ten years. These two certificates, under the Law on Public Procurement and the Tent File, are mandatory documents that must be submitted by offer.

The entire period that this procurement process has lasted, the sole owner of the contract-designed company, by 100%, was Mr. Buy Kuci. He, on June 05th, 2020, had accepted office as Minister of Economy and Environment in the Government of the Republic of Kosovo”.

Based on this fact, KDI had raised doubts about whether the contract was awarded to Hidroterm, whose owner was already a senior public official, was a conflict of interest, and was addressed to the Anti-Corruption Agency (AKK) on August 28, 2020.

After four months of KDI's application date and nearly three months after contracting Hidroterm was signed, the AKK on December 24, 2020 had responded to demands in which it had estimated there was not enough evidence to argue the suspicion of possible existence of the conflict of interest. One of the AKK's reasonings about the lack of evidence for conflict of interest was that Blerim Kuci was not the owner of “Hedromerm” but was on the passive pledge of shares or shares in capital.

Whatever, The KDI had provided data from the ARBK that property change occurred on December 01th 2020, until KDI's request for interpretation of the conflict of interest was on the AKK table, and not within 30 days of accepting the office of a senior public official as required by the law to prevent conflict interest.

On the other hand, in the offer submitted by Hydroterm, KDI had found that Mr. Blerim Kuci had actually deposited CV, along with his qualifications, as evidence of meeting the professional criteria of the Tent file, Article 9.1&9.2 as a builder/hytrotechnic engineer”.

The KDI general conclusion regarding this specific tender lies in non-professional treatment of the subject from all involved institutions, USKKUK, OSHP, AKK and CRPP, and thus calls on justice bodies to investigate the reasons for these violations and neglects.