KUALA LUMPUR (March 14): The government should consider lowering the threshold for open tenders, said a think tank.

Currently, procurement of works, supplies and services above the value of RM50,000 and up to RM500,000 is done through calling of quotations, with a mininum of five to be called.

Whereas procurement of works, supplies and services above the value of RM500,000 must be done through tender processes.

"To promote the use of open tenders, the threshold for the procurement of goods, works and services should be lowered to RM200,000.," said Aira Azhari, senior executive at The Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS).

For comparison, she said Singapore's threshold for use of quotations is for contracts between SGD$3,100 to SGD$70,000.

This is one of seven recommendations presented earlier by the think tank to improve procurement initiatives set out in the government's new National Anti-Corruption Plan 2019-2023 (NACP) which was launched on Jan 29.

Statistics show from 2013 to 2018, the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) found the procurement sector to have recorded the highest number of complaints (42.8%) received by the MACC.

Another recommendation raised was to ensure open tenders are used as the main method of procurement.

“The only mention of ‘open tender’ in the plan is in one initiative to ensure the appointment of rescuing contractors through open tender. The use of rescue contractors should be a solution to an occasional problem.

“Otherwise, open tenders should be treated as the primary method of procurement. The fact that the NACP does not explicitly refer to open tender in this way, may be due to the fact that a policy mandating the use of open tender is nominally in place. However, this policy is not sufficiently enforced.

“The strategy should therefore prioritise stricter enforcement of the requirement for open tender. In particular, any agency derogating from the requirement for open tender should publish their rationale for doing so,” Aira said in a dialogue session hosted by IDEAS earlier.

She also noted that various proposed initiatives outlined in the NACP may not be feasible, unless information is openly accessible and readily available.

"Hence, the government should hasten the introduction of a Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, which was outlined in the plan, as soon as possible," she said.

Additionally, IDEAS proposes for the government to review and amend certain clauses within the Official Secrets Act 1972, so as not to contradict with the introduction of the FOI law.

"This would allow whistleblowers, journalists and the public to freely check on procurement activities," Aira said.