By: Staff Writer
July 15, Colombo (LNW): An alleged fraud involving a tender award by Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd. (AASL) for constructing a new building at Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) has been exposed, informed sources said.
The Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) had rejected a particular bidder due to non-compliance with the tender specifications, yet this bidder was later awarded the contract by the Procurement Appeal Board (PAB), raising concerns of potential corruption.
The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Aviation, with a history of bribery allegations, called for international competitive bids in December 2023. Five bidders submitted quotes: Sanken Construction, a JV of Tudawe Brothers and China Harbour Engineering Company (TB-CHEC), Maga Engineering, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, and a JV of Consulting Engineers and Contractors and China Nautical Aero Technology International Engineering Corporation (CEC-CAIEC).
TEC evaluated these bids, recommending Sanken Construction as the lowest responsive bidder. However, the PAB, led by G.S. Withanage, awarded the contract to the technically non-compliant CEC-CAIEC JV. Despite TEC and the Standing Cabinet Appointed Procurement Committee (SCAPC) approving Sanken, the PAB favored CEC-CAIEC, citing domestic preference regulations inaccurately.
Sanken Construction’s Managing Director, Eng. Ranjith Gunatilleke, and Executive Director, Eng. Susil Rodrigo, expressed concerns over procedural irregularities.
They highlighted the Ministry Secretary’s failure to notify them of their bid’s success and the PAB’s decision, which violated natural justice principles by excluding them from the appeal process. They argued that the PAB’s decision undermined the integrity and transparency of the procurement process, posing risks to the project’s successful completion.
Gunatilleke requested transparency from the Ministry Secretary and appealed to the Cabinet of Ministers to halt the award to CEC-CAIEC. He filed an RTI application, revealing TEC’s report confirming Sanken’s compliance and CEC-CAIEC’s non-compliance.
The case exposed significant flaws and potential biases in the procurement appeal process, leading to concerns about the Ministry’s operational integrity and the overall attractiveness of Sri Lanka as a business destination.
Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Aviation sources stated that this is the second major fraud the ministry employees have come across in the recent past
Executive Director Sanken Construction (Pvt) Ltd, Eng. Susil Rodrigo said that they were kept in the dark by the Ministry Secretary from the initial stage by not notifying that they were the successful bidder as per the TEC recommendation.
The TEC report stands as a clear testimony to the fact that no other bidder other than Sanken, is lawfully entitled to be recommended to offer the tender which was agreed to by SCAPC.
By excluding Sanken Construction from the appeal procedure adopted by the PAB, we were made unaware of the conclusions/ recommendations of the PAB.
The procurement appeal process followed by the PAB is completely flawed and tainted by substantive errors as well as procedural errors,” said Rodrigo.
