This is because he could not trust the Ministry of Water and Human Settlements to do the right thing as they had proved to be biased when dealing with the matter before. Despite the bid having been almost P300 million cheaper and having passed all stages, Tawana JV, consisting of G4 Civil (Pty) Ltd, Landmark Projects (Pty) Ltd and Asphalt Botswana (Pty) Ltd, was initially sidelined and the tender awarded to China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation and Zhon Gan Engineering & Construction Corporation (Botswana) (Pty) Ltd (collectively referred to as China Civil here). The dispute is around Tender No. POU/ MLWA/ DTS/ NCOJANE WATER SUPPLY WORKS/ 0158/ 09102023, a Works Contract for Detailed Designs and Construction of Ghanzi South & Kgalagadi North Villages Water Supply Project.
The caseThe Public Procurement Tribunal on November 24, 2024, set aside the decision by the then Lands and Water Affairs ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr Kekgonne Baipoledi, to award the tender at P1.8 billion to China Civil. Amongst other orders, the Tribunal cancelled the tender. As if that is not enough, the ministry and its leadership will be investigated for corruption as the Tribunal was left shocked at the discoveries that many irregularities were discovered. China Civil did not appeal the decision of the Tribunal, while Tawana JV did so by issuing the statutory notice of intention to appeal as required by Section 138 of the Public Procurement Act. Both Tawana JV and China Civil contend that the Tribunal was wrong in cancelling the disputed tender. Tawana JV contended it should have been awarded the tender because it had the most responsive bid, while the China Civil similarly maintained that they were entitled to a substitution order.
