KUALA LUMPUR: The Youth and Sports Ministry has reminded contractors and bidders to make a non-collusion declaration and not to engage in any price-fixing arrangements when participating in any procurement with the ministry.
In a statement today, the ministry said that this was in line with the Treasury Circular, PK 1.6 (Integrity in Government Procurement), where ministries must pay serious attention to the issue of cartel bid-rigging in government procurements and report such cases to the Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC) if there are any signs of it.
"It is also aligned with the Madani government's mission and commitment to ensure that the governance and financial management of the country are transparent and free from any misconduct and abuse of power," it said in the statement.
The ministry stated that offers from companies or contractors participating in tenders and quotations will be examined not only in terms of technical and financial aspects but also to ensure they are free from bid-rigging cartels or collusion.
On Feb 20, the ministry and MyCC held follow-up discussions to strengthen cooperation in three aspects such as advocacy on anti-competition, policy advice from MyCC and sharing of information and reporting suspected cases that may violate the Competition Act 2010.
"It is the responsibility of the ministry to ensure that government procurement is carried out based on good governance practices by adhering to government procurement principles, namely public accountability, transparency, maximising value for money, promoting open competition, and ensuring fairness and equity," it said.