Hesitant when just painting walls, changing tiles... hundreds of millions must be bid

Many officials have shaken their heads in dismay when simple jobs such as re-roofing, filling cracked walls and repainting, or replacing peeling floor tiles with a total value of over 100 million VND have to go through bidding procedures.

On the afternoon of November 6, the National Assembly discussed in the hall the draft Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Planning, the Law on Investment, the Law on Investment under the public-private partnership model and the Law on Bidding.

Many delegates were concerned about a series of current shortcomings in bidding.

In just a few months, tens of thousands of officials will be afraid of mistakes and responsibility again.

Delegate Tran Huu Hau (Tay Ninh) expressed his excitement when the Government issued Decree No. 138/2024 allowing localities, agencies and units to use regular expenditures of up to 15 billion VND to purchase equipment, renovate, upgrade, expand and construct construction items in invested construction projects.

“This is great news for localities across the country and many ministries and sectors, the result of heated debates, even very heated ones, throughout four National Assembly sessions,” delegate Hau emphasized.

Delegate Tran Huu Hau (Tay Ninh). Photo: QH

According to the delegate, this regulation has helped tens of thousands of cadres, civil servants and public employees no longer have to fear mistakes and responsibility, showing an effective and strong impact in removing institutional bottlenecks. Removing this bottleneck not only removes procedures but also creates motivation and impetus for them to work and be creative.

However, the delegate also warned that in just a few months, thousands, even tens of thousands of cadres, civil servants, and public employees, including many who hold their heads high today, will again be afraid of making mistakes and being afraid of responsibility.

Because items with capital from regular expenditure budget will enter bidding when their value is over 100 million VND according to the Bidding Law.

This is a long-standing regulation that is no longer suitable for the country's socio-economic development, with the devaluation of materials, raw materials, and labor costs.

"I believe that many officials and delegates in this hall have shaken their heads in dismay when simple tasks such as re-roofing, filling cracked walls and repainting, and replacing peeling floor tiles with a total value of over 100 million VND have to go through bidding procedures," delegate Hau shared.

According to calculations based on current regulations, when fully implementing the bidding process, it takes at least 31 days and 11 million VND. With a consulting bid package, it takes at least 48 days due to some additional steps.

Therefore, delegate Hau proposed to amend the Bidding Law in the direction of raising the level of bidding for jobs using regular expenditures to the same level as public investment, that is, for consulting packages, it is over 500 million, and for non-consulting service procurement and construction packages, it is over 1 billion.

“I think we need to strongly remove obstacles and create openness within the administrative apparatus. Because if things are not clear inside, it will be difficult to be clear outside,” delegate Hau analyzed.

In no other country is a pill in the hospital so heavily regulated.

Delegate Tran Thi Nhi Ha (Hanoi City) also proposed amending Clause 2, Article 55 of the Law on Bidding in the direction of allowing medical examination and treatment facilities to decide on their own procurement to ensure publicity, transparency, economic efficiency, and accountability without having to apply the forms of contractor selection as prescribed in the Law on Bidding.

Delegate Tran Thi Nhi Ha (Hanoi City). Photo: QH

Ms. Ha pointed out the obvious difference in the bidding and procurement of drugs and medical equipment between public and non-public health facilities. While public facilities face many difficulties in bidding, leading to drug shortages, non-public health facilities ensure adequate drugs and equipment, even rare drugs, original pharmaceuticals and modern medical equipment.

Delegate Pham Khanh Phong Lan (HCMC) also suggested that the decree and guiding circulars could be amended as delegate Nhi Ha said, but if they cannot be amended, they must be understood in a broader sense, that is, we decide on our own purchases and choose our own forms.

“In fact, in the market recently, we have seen that there are people asking very good questions, why there has been no shortage of medicine for so many years but now there is a shortage, we cannot blame it all on Covid-19, we have to clearly see that we are making things difficult for ourselves, making ourselves miserable,” Ms. Lan noted.

The female delegate of Ho Chi Minh City said that there is no country in which a single pill entering the hospital is controlled so much.

“Through all these years of tireless bidding, have we saved anything or have a series of people been wronged and brought to criminal proceedings, having fallen before bidding? Bidding is not the only or best way,” delegate Pham Khanh Phong Lan emphasized.

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung. Photo: QH

Explaining later, Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung expressed his agreement with the delegates that it is necessary to study and expand the subjects that can be designated for bidding; increase the limits and designated bidding packages, not to let it be 200 million VND or 300 million VND.

“We are studying whether we can raise it further to ensure long-term stability, otherwise we will have to fix it again after we have finished fixing it. We will study it,” the Minister accepted.

Regarding drug bidding, Mr. Dung basically agreed with delegates Phong Lan and Nhi Ha to let pharmacies be autonomous, make their own decisions, and take responsibility for themselves.

“If they commit wrongdoings, collude or raise prices, we will have other laws to deal with them. There is no problem, we must force bidding. Whether to bid or not is up to the people to decide. Whether to buy directly or how to buy is up to them to choose,” said the Minister.

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Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/ngai-ngan-khi-chi-son-tuong-thay-gach-lat-tram-trieu-cung-phai-dau-thau-2339460.html