KUALA LUMPUR: The Bintulu Port Authority (BPA) granted a RM1.4bil supply base dock project to a construction company via direct negotiation, according to the Auditor-General's Report 2016 Series 2. The report added that the granting of the contract was done without obtaining prior approval from the Finance Ministry. "The Audit did not find any evidence indicating that the BPA had applied for permission from the Finance Ministry to execute procurement through direct negotiation," said the report. It said that there were also no letters of intent for all four procurements, adding that there were no price negotiations between the two parties. “BPA’s failure to adhere to these price negotiation procedures expose them to the risks of abuse of power and mismanagement.

Source: The Star November 27, 2017 10:18 UTC