Sports Bureau faces scrutiny after faulty contract reassignment

The Commission Against Corruption (CCAC) has criticized the Sports Bureau (ID) for awarding pool management and lifeguard service contracts to a company that previously failed to meet its obligations, raising concerns over the fairness and credibility of the tender process.

The corruption watchdog said such practices are “confusing and unacceptable” and could undermine the fairness and credibility of the award process.

During the review of an administrative complaint, the CCAC found that in March 2024, the company in question won two pool management and lifeguard service contracts through a public tender.

However, it failed to meet contractual obligations, including hiring sufficient lifeguards, leading to the invalidation of the awards.

In August 2024, the ID re-divided service areas and launched four new tenders for similar services.

The bureau concluded that the company still met the bidder qualifications and, following its existing evaluation criteria, awarded some of the public pool management and lifeguard service contracts to the same company again.

The CCAC urged the Sports Bureau to adopt measures to improve future tender evaluations. This includes optimizing scoring systems and reviewing criteria to better assess bidders’ past performance and service quality.

Such improvements, the commission said, would provide a more comprehensive understanding of bidders’ capabilities and make scoring more fair and credible.

The ID has acknowledged the CCAC’s recommendations and plans to refine its public tender procedures.

Under the new measures, the bureau will include a “deduction” mechanism in evaluation criteria.

Bidders’ records over the past 24 months, including failure to meet contractual obligations, violations, or fines, will result in score reductions in the service experience category.

The changes aim to more accurately reflect bidders’ track records and service quality, ensuring future awards are based on a more complete assessment. Times reporter