The Local Government Service will crack the whip on procurement officers who go contrary to the Public Procurement Act and all other rules governing their practice. The Head of the Local Government Service, Dr Nana Ato Arthur, who issued the warning, said it had become necessary to crack the whip and deal with perpetrators of infractions.
Speaking at the opening of a three-day training workshop organised for heads of procurement units from the Central, Western and the Greater Accra regions at Elmina last Monday, Dr Arthur said procurement infractions were on the rise.
He indicated that in times past, it had been the norm that procurement officers who were found contravening the law faced no prosecution.
Therefore, he urged practitioners to work with clear-cut financial skills and an understanding of their work ethics.
The training was aimed at building the capacity of procurement practitioners in the country.
Financial loss
"It has become very necessary to deal with individuals who are contravening the laws and causing financial loss, Dr Arthur stated.
He emphasised that his outfit would liaise with other stakeholders to sanction persons who involved themselves in the act.
Professionalism
Dr Arthur called for professionalism on the part of the officers and charged them to work within the confines of their rules and regulations to avoid conflict with other professionals, especially engineers.
He bemoaned the "sickening attitude of some workers who report to work late and close earlier than the time outlined," saying it was one of the main causes of inefficiency in the sector.
"It is worrying to see some of you report to work late, claiming you are single parents and so you must be pardoned, "he said.
"How then do you propel this sector forward with this flimsy excuse," Dr Arthur queried
Corruption perception
The Chief Director of the Central Regional Coordinating Council, Mr Kingsley Adjei Boahene, advised the participants to discharge their duties with the highest ethics and standards to ensure that they regained public confidence which had been in tatters over the years.
He observed that the ill behaviour of some procurement officers made it difficult for the sector to gain the full trust of the public.
"I will urge all of us here to work again and position ourselves better to regain public trust especially in these times," he stated.
Mr Boahene commended the Local Government Service for organising the training for its members.
COVID-19
He said the COVID-19 period had witnessed a boom in online activities.
It would therefore be prudent that the strategies for coordination and information sharing were mapped out to enable them to remain connected to the public during the pandemic.
Mr Boahene advised local service managers to respond to the current trends the COVID-19 pandemic has presented and replicate them more broadly.
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