The government’s agency in charge of buying computing equipment on behalf of its various departments has joined calls for an investigation into a dubious laptop procurement contract in Mpumalanga, distancing itself from the deal altogether.
Exorbitant pricing, markups and underhanded tendering activities have been at the heart of a long list of corrupt dealings regarding procurement of various items by the government over the years.
The State Information Technology Agency (Sita) on Wednesday said it supports the call for an investigation into the procurement of 22 laptops at a cost of about R2m by the Mpumalanga department of basic education.
At that price, the cost of each computer would have been R90,900 on average.
Sita, set up to co-ordinate government IT resources, did not disclose details of the make and model of the computers purchased but the calculated average is far above the normal cost of a Windows-based laptop typically used by government employees.
The agency distanced itself from the transaction, saying it was “not involved in the procurement process of the 22 laptops. Furthermore, there is no record of such a transaction on Sita’s systems.
“The investigation must shed light on many procurement related questions that have yet to be answered,” said the agency.
Sita has been under the microscope, accused by a number of government departments of being inefficient. In December, communications minister Solly Malatsi ordered a probe into Sita’s affairs by the Public Service Commission.
Sita is responsible for the establishment of the transversal panel for state departments to source laptops from suppliers.
A transversal panel is a list of preapproved suppliers “who have been vetted and met requirements set out to respond to customer needs expressed in a bid that falls within a specified scope of commodities”.
These suppliers form part of th National Treasury and Sita’s procurement database “to ensure compliance, competitiveness and fair opportunity”.
Sita, however, says the prices charged were not reasonable.
“We established the transversal procurement panels to build the capacity of the state and not to destroy it.
“We find it extremely concerning that notwithstanding the existence of this transversal panel, which has both national and provincial reach, the department paid an outrageously exorbitant cost for those laptops.
“This attracts curiosity and must invite an investigative process to understand what really happened,” said Tlali Tlali, Sita head of corporate affairs.
SA’s constitution provides that the contracting of goods and services must, among other things, be done in a manner that is “fair, equitable, transparent, competitive and cost-effective”.
The contracts put in place by Sita have a mechanism in places outlining parameters for a mark-up on products sourced by distributors from manufacturers.
“The unit price which these laptops were sold at to the client has exceeded the threshold for a mark-up permitted under this transversal contract,” said Sita.
“We will be meeting with officials in the office of the Premier of Mpumalanga on Wednesday, April 23 to discuss and/or share information on the matter.
“Sita will request information from the client as to who the supplier was and consider taking necessary steps,” said Tlali.
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