Former FPBS officer flags ‘red flags’ in tender case

A former senior procurement officer for the Fiji Pharmaceutical Biomedical Services (FPBS) yesterday told the High Court that there were “red flags” in relation to CTN 66 of 2013.

Maire Wise made the statement while giving evidence during the Health Tender Case involving former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama, former Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum and former Minister for Health, Neil Sharma.

The matter is being heard before Justice Usaia Ratuvili. During cross-examination by Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Laisani Tabuakoro, Ms Wise confirmed several e-mails that were sent from her official e-mail account in December 2011 regarding tender discussions and follow-up requests.

Ms Wise told the court that a meeting was later held at the FPBS conference room involving members of the Tender Evaluation Committee.

She said the meeting discussions were about the “new developments” concerning the tender process.

She said discussions involved proposed changes to the technical specifications of the tender. Concerns were raised during the meeting, which she described as “red flags” in the tender process.

While being questioned by Ms Tabuakoro, Ms Wise told the court that she could not recall receiving any bidding documents that are currently missing.

She said FPBS officers advised that the issues needed to be properly considered before any final decision was made. The former procurement officer further confirmed that minutes of the meeting were recorded and kept on file as part of the official tender documentation.

The trial continues.