By The Weekly Vision
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) suffered a huge financial blow recently after The Public Procurement Administrative Review Board cancelled a multi-million shilling tender that the commission had awarded to Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited.
The cancellation of the award came after Trident Insurance Company Limited filed for a review against the decision of the Secretary of the Commission concerning Tender No. IEBC/OT/23/03/2022- 2023 for the Provision of Medical Insurance, Group Life Assurance (GLA) and Group Personal Accident (GPA) Covers for Commissioners and Staff. The IEBC had invited sealed tenders from interested and eligible tenderers. The invitation was by way of an advertisement in the Daily Nation on 3rd March 2023. The subject tender’s submission deadline was scheduled for 24th March 2023 at 11.00 a.m. A total of 46 tenders were submitted in response to the subject tender, they were then opened in the presence of tenderers’.
A Tender Evaluation Committee undertook the evaluation of the 46 tenders and at the end of the evaluation stage, 26 tenders were determined non-responsive including Trident Insurance Company Limited tender while 20 tenders including Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited tenders were determined responsive. The 20 tenders that were determined responsive proceeded to evaluation at the Preliminary Evaluation (Administrative/ Formal Mandatory Requirements) stage. At the end of evaluation at this stage, 12 tenders were determined non-responsive while 8 tenders including Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited tenders were determined responsive.
At the end of evaluation at this stage, 5 tenders were determined non-responsive while 3 tenders, being Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited tenders in Lot 1, Lot 2, and Lot 3 of the subject tender, were determined responsive and thus proceeded for evaluation at the Financial Evaluation stage. At the end of the Financial Evaluation stage, Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited tenders were determined to have the lowest evaluated tender price in Lot 1, Lot 2, and Lot 3 of the subject tender.
The Evaluation Committee recommended the award of the subject tender to Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited as the lowest responsive evaluated tenderer in Lot 1, Lot 2, and Lot 3. Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited was awarded Lot 1- Medical Insurance M/S Zamara Risk & Insurance Brokers with Jubilee Health Insurance Limited as the underwriter at a total cost of Ksh. 471,571,410 for two years. For Lot 2- Group Life Assurance (GLA) M/S Zamara Risk & Insurance Brokers with Jubilee Health Insurance Limited as the underwriter at a total cost of Ksh. 29,164,890 for two (2) years. Lot 3- Group Personal Accident (GPA) M/S Zamara Risk & Insurance Brokers with Jubilee Health Insurance Limited as the underwriter at a total cost of Ksh. 7,922,714 for two years.
In a Professional Opinion dated 28th April 2023 by the Director of Supply Chain Management, Dr Harley Mutisya, reviewed how the subject procurement 14 process was undertaken including the evaluation of tenders and concurred with the recommendations of the Evaluation Committee concerning the award of the subject tender to Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited.
He thus requested the IEBC secretary to approve the award of the subject tender as per the recommendation of the Evaluation Committee. Thereafter, Mr Marjan Hussein Marjan approved the award of the subject tender to Zamara Risk And Insurance Brokers Limited on 28th April 2023.
Tenderers were notified of the outcome of the evaluation vide letters of Notification of Award dated 3rd May 2023. However, Trident Insurance Company Limited filed a Request for Review No.28 of 2023 dated 9th May 2023 seeking orders that the respondent’s decision to disqualify their tender at the preliminary examination stage as nonresponsive be substituted with the Board’s decision that the Applicant’s tender is substantially responsive and that the disqualification be annulled and set aside.
The Board found that the Applicant’s tender in the subject tender was not evaluated in accordance 18 with Mandatory Requirement No. 5 of Clause i. The ruling reads in part “The upshot of our findings is that the instant Request for Review dated 14th June 2023 and filed on 16th June 2023 succeeds only to the extent that the Letter of Notification of Award dated 8th June 2023 issued to the Applicant did not meet the threshold required under Section 87(3) of the Act:
The Board made the following orders in the Request for Review dated 14th June 2023 and filed on 16th June 2023 that the Letter of Notification of Award dated 8th June 2023 addressed to the Applicant concerning Lot 1: Medical Insurance of Tender No. IEBC/OT/23/03/2022-2023 be and is hereby nullified and set aside. 2. The 1st Respondent is hereby directed to issue the Applicant with a fresh Letter of Notification of Award concerning Lot 1: Medical Insurance of Tender No. IEBC/OT/23/03/2022-2023.
