Kenya’s Jubilee Coalition laptop project tender that had been issued has yet again dismissed by judges, now the tendering process will have to start all over again and will take at least six months and in addition to that the first deliveries will be delayed by months.
Justices George Odunga, Francis Gikonyo and Weldon Korir declared the Sh24 billion laptop tender that was awarded to Olive Telecommunications PVT Ltd of India, flawed.
It all started when the public procurement board cancelled the contract awarded to Indian firm Olive Telecommunications PVT Ltd because it had not marched up the financial requirement set in the tender document and was not an original equipment manufacturer.
Jacob Kaimenyi, Education Cabinet Secretary said the Government will abide by the ruling, adding, he hoped this time losing bidders will not launch appeals and stall the process further.
Jubilee had promised to issue the computers in its first year in office. The whole process began last year in august where the Government asked companies to bid for the provision of laptops, printers and projectors for all the public schools in the country, for a sum of Ksh53.2 billion.
Even after the likes of Microsoft, among other companies, had expressed their interest the government cancelled the tender later in October and called for another tender claiming that the bidders had exceeded the budgetary projections.
Later in march Olive was declared the winner of the tender, beating Hellewart Packard (HP) and Haier Electrical Appliances Limited.
HP then accused the government of awarding the tender to Olive unfairly since it did not meet the basic tendering requirements as Olive does not manufacture devices on its own and subcontracts Chinese companies to make Olive-branded devices, contrary to the tender rules that required all bidders be original equipment manufacturers.
According to the government, the company was awarded the tender based on the fact that it had placed the lowest bid of Sh22 billion shillings compared to the Sh23 billion bid by HP and Haier’s Sh24 billion.
