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Ballot contract given back to foreign firms
A man casts his vote at a polling station in Katwe, Kampala, during the 2016 elections. PHOTO/ FILE
What you need to know:
- “If we are going to say we follow all the processes until everybody is satisfied, where is the time? Let’s be realistic. Let’s not only focus on legality and bubu. Let’s look at the realities. If you don’t have ballot papers come 2021, what next? Let’s focus on the fundamentals,” Justice Simon Byabakama, EC chairman
The Electoral Commission (EC) has given back the ballot printing contract to foreign companies, ignoring pleas and protests by local printers.
Sources close to EC told Daily Monitor yesterday that the evaluation committee last week recommended that the seven foreign companies, which had earlier been awarded the deal retain their contract, insisting that the local companies lacked capacity to print the 187 million ballots needed for the 2021 elections and deliver them on time.
“EC has maintained their earlier position with foreign companies going to print the 2021 ballot papers. There is nothing that has been given to local companies. They continued as they wanted it to be done. They have already given out the contracts to them. They have not considered the local printers,” the source said.
On Monday, KFM journalist Ben Jumbe asked EC chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama whether his team had decided who would print the ballot papers. But Justice Byabakama only said: “Don’t lose your sleep over ballot papers. The process is ongoing. You can be sure you will have ballots on January 14.”
Sources said the EC evaluation team handed over the re-evaluation report to their boss following the directive of the Public Procurement and Disposable of Public Assets Authority (PPDA) to re-evaluate the contract and consider local printers to benefit from the tender.
EC had awarded the ballot contract to seven foreign companies; Tall Security Printers (UK), Uniprint (South Africa), United Printing and Publishing (Abu Dhabi, UAE), Adare Sec Ltd (UK), and Al Ghurair Printing and Publishing Company (Dubai).
The local companies, through Uganda Printers and Packaging Association, petitioned PPDA, alleging unfair exclusion. The local companies claimed EC did not consider the Buy Uganda Build Uganda policy while awarding the Shs200b tender to foreign firms.
The PPDA cancelled the initial contract and ordered EC to revaluate the bids and consider inclusion of local companies among the beneficiaries.
However, the EC has since maintained that local companies do not have capacity to print the bulky ballot papers.
UPPA chairperson Archy Kiwanuka said since the re-evaluation started, they have not received any communication from either EC or PPDA to inform them, as petitioners, what steps were being taken.
Mr Paul Bukenya, the EC spokesperson, confirmed yesterday that a re-evaluation of the bids had been concluded and a report written but declined to give the details.
“We conducted a re-evaluation as directed by PPDA and we have written a report to that effect. I am unable to comment further on the details,” Mr Bukenya said.
The PPDA boss, Mr Benson Turamye, yesterday said he received a letter from the EC, informing him that they had complied with all the guidelines.
“They have written to me a letter saying they implemented all the recommendations. It came on Friday; the update I have is that the recommendations we gave them were implemented. We are waiting to see,” he said.
