The Integrity Commission has cleared a senior officer at the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) of allegations of impropriety in the award of a contract to an employee, but has rapped the agency for failing to keep proper records of the agreement.

The investigation was launched in December 2020, based on a complaint that the agency’s senior director of corporate services, Angela Whyte, had awarded a painting contract to groundsman Woddville Lewis, after providing him with inside information which gave him an advantage.

According to a report from the commission, tabled in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, ODPEM sought quotations from General Paintings Limited, Albert Painting Service, and Skyjam Jamaica for painting of the guardhouse on the agency’s premises.

Recommendations were then made by Administrator Arlain Taylor to Senior Procurement Officer Dennis Spencer, for the award of contract to General Paintings for $100,724, but a quotation was requested verbally from the groundsman to whom the contract eventually went. He reportedly submitted an invoice for $54,500 in December 2019.

“Mr Woodville Lewis was selected for the award of contract on the basis that the quotation submitted by him was the ‘most economic choice’ for the ‘minor job’ and also because Mr Lewis had the technical competence to execute the painting works,” the Integrity Commission noted.

Director of Investigations (DI) Kevon Stephenson concluded that the corporate services director was duly authorised to approve contracts below $100,000, in keeping with the internal procedures of ODPEM, and that there is no evidence of a conflict of interest in the award of contract.

“The DI has found no evidence to support a relationship other than one of a professional nature,” he said.

However, he found that ODPEM had breached Government procurement guidelines which indicate that regardless of the method of procurement or the source of funding, transparent procedures must be established for contracts.

Stephenson noted that ODPEM had failed to prepare and/or preserve documentation relevant to the award of the contract to Lewis.

“More particularly, the ODPEM failed to document the advice sought and received from the Office of Public Procurement Policy, an estimate and detailed specifications of the works to be done so as to allow prospective contractors to properly submit pro forma invoices; and the basis upon which a quotation was requested,” he outlined.

The DI pointed out that the preparation of the purchase order, approximately nine days after the painting works started, was counter to ODPEM’s internal procedures for procuring goods or services below $100,000, and furthermore, it meant that when the work started there was no contract in place to enforce the agreement.