The government’s race against time for introducing machine-readable passport (MRP) and machine-readable visa (MRV) is being delayed due to constant change of decisions in appointing a firm to implement the scheme.
In less than a month, the seven-member evaluation committee for MRP and MRV has changed its decision thrice. Brig Gen Md Refayet Ullah, project director (PD) of the venture, heads the committee.
On Sunday the committee, comprising representatives from home ministry, Department of Immigration and Passport, Security Printing Corporation Ltd and police department, backtracked from its first decision of selecting Malaysia-based IRIS Corporation Berhad for the project to meet international deadline, which is to expire on April 1, 2010.
“We sent the latest (third) evaluation report to the home ministry Sunday to consider IRIS as the first and Flora as second responsive firms since IRIS was recommended in the first report,” the PD told The Daily Star last night.
Sources in the home ministry said the committee recommended IRIS again after getting information on the company from Malaysian embassy in Bangladesh and Turkey.
In the latest shift, the committee also considered the additional money that Flora Telecom quoted in its bidding, said a source.
As per financial evaluation, IRIS will get about Tk 600 crore against Flora’s nearly Tk 960 crore for implementing the project in five years.
Earlier, the committee on November 23 recommended IRIS as the lowest bidder that fulfilled tender requirements. The decision was made despite some loopholes in the company’s tender document. However, the committee in its evaluation report suggested that Flora Telecom Ltd be given the job if IRIS expresses inability.
On December 8, the same committee held a meeting to re-evaluate its prior decision and declared the Malaysian company non-responsive considering the loopholes and some allegations against it.
“The committee did not know about the Turkish government’s ban on IRIS Corporation Berhad for two years. The company, however, did not mention this in its tender proposal, which is a violation of condition of the tender,” says the re-evaluation report that recommended Flora Telecom Ltd as the other lone responsive bidder.
Sources in the evaluation committee said the changes were made following an instruction of the home ministry. “But all these efforts are to select the most capable firm,” said one of the members of the evaluation committee.
Categories: Bangla, Bangladesh, Bangladesh Economy, Bangladesh News, Daily Bangladesh News, Economy, News
