THE Democratic Alliance (DA) in eThekwini has welcomed a decision of the eThekwini Bid Adjudication Committee (BAC) to reject the unsolicited bid to develop the Virginia Airport site.
The BAC announced at a meeting open to the public today (Wednesday, 22 November), that they were accepting the recommendation made by National Treasury to reject the proposal on the basis that it did not comply with the requirements of accepting an unsolicited bid, as per section 37 of the eThekwini Supply Chain Management (SCM) Policy.
In October 2015, a public notice went out announcing that the municipality was considering an unsolicited bid to develop the Virginia Airport site. In response the DA submitted a comprehensive 40 page objection to the proposed bid citing various discrepancies and blatant non-compliance with relevant legislation.
READ RELATED: DA submits objection to Virginia Airport development process
Councillor Shaun Ryley said: “From the outset, the DA maintained that we would fight this due to the fact that the correct process had not been followed. The decision of the BAC today has vindicated our assertion that the bid itself, as well as the decision to even consider it, was completely irrational and fraught with non-compliance with the SCM policy.”
The initial BAC meeting was held on 6 December 2016 where it was heard that National Treasury had not been given the opportunity to comment on the proposal and the meeting was adjourned.
“We heard today that Treasury came back with their response on 12 December 2016, recommending that the bid be rejected on the basis that it did not conform with section 37(2)(c) of the SCM policy which states that the person who makes the bid must be the sole provider of the product or service,” said Ryley.
He said the proposal included an obligation on the city to provide R400 million worth of bulk infrastructure as part of the project. This figure is equal to almost one per cent of eThekwini’s entire 2015/16 budget, the period during which the proposal submitted for public comment. Ryley said ultimately this detail was to be the downfall of the bid.
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“On this basis, it is astounding that this proposal was even considered in the first place. This automatically leads one to speculate whether there was an attempt to push this proposal through in order in order to benefit a select few individuals at the behest of the previous ANC administration had it come to fruition. We are not opposed to development in the city of Durban, as long as it follows the correct process and is open to everybody. Development, particularly when it involves council property, should expand opportunities across the board – it should not be done in a manner that is exclusive to a select few, said Ryley.
He said the whole process has only succeeded in stifling investment in the Virginia Airport for the past six years in order to make the facility seem unfeasible.
“The airport has the potential to be a significant contributor to the economy of this city and the municipality should be looking at ways to ensure its viability. This decision can only be described as a victory for accountability and transparency,” said Ryley.
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