Official accused of favouritism in contract award
Contractors on Monday accused District Council Chief Officer Fazal Akram of violating regulations and inappropriately helping his favourite (contractors) win an Rs920 million contract.
They alleged that the contracting officer, who was primarily responsible for overseeing bidding procedures, acted improperly. The contractors raised slogans inside the district council hall.
They said that the district office set the deadline for opening the bids at 2 o'clock but he delayed and dragged it till 5 pm so that his favourite contractors could be included in the list.
The ‘unsuccessful’ contractors claimed that CO Fazal Akram broke the law by accepting the contractors' tenders without a bid. They alleged that the chief officer proceeded against the rules and accepted the tenders till 5 o'clock, favouring select contractors.
Chief Officer Akram denied the allegation and stated that it was infighting among contractors and they were implicating the district council unnecessarily.
“I deny any allegations that I have shown favoritism to any contractor. I wouldn't transgress any law," he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 6th, 2022.