Dianna Rajcumar replaces Rawle Lucas on final list for new Procurement Commission
Disagreement within the APNU+AFC Coalition has seen changes to the composition of the new Public Procurement Commission (PPC), a process that requires a two-thirds parliamentary majority for eventual success.
Following a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Monday – a parliamentary body tasked with selecting the individuals – it was announced that Dianna Rajcumar replaced Rawle Lucas.
Rajcumar is an Executive of the Alliance for Change (AFC), one of the larger parties in the APNU+AFC coalition and was the Personal Assistant to the former Minister of Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan.
Last week’s meeting of the PAC was cancelled amid rumours that the AFC was not in support of the announced names which included Lucas, a former Chairman of both the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the Guyana Power and Light (GPL). He is also a lecturer at the University of Guyana (UG).
“As you are aware, for the establishment of the PPC, it requires a two-thirds majority and the opposition is a Coalition. So, the leadership met and deliberated and the end result is that Diana Rajcumar was selected,” Chairman of the PAC Jermaine Figueira told reporters.
The other persons who have been named are President of the Guyana Bar Association Pauline Chase and former Chairman of the National Tender Board Berkely Wickham.
Financial Analyst of JB Consultancy and Associates Joel Bhagwandin and Rajnarine Singh, an Executive member of the Guyana Hindu Dharma Sabha and retired diplomat, have also been named.
“I am sure the five names will have the confidence of 2/3 majority and that’s where we are essentially,” Figueira added.
He said the motion will be moved next week at PAC and then presented to the full House after due diligence, which will pave the way for the establishment of the PPC. The Commission exercises a major regulatory and oversight role in public procurement and the awarding of contracts.
The five names, after parliamentary approval, will then go to the President who will then administer the Oath of Office.
The functions of the Public Procurement Commission include making regulations governing procurement, determining documents for public procurement such as bidding, prequalification, evaluation and contract forms, reviewing decisions of procuring entities and adjudicating debarment proceedings.
There has been no PPC for the last two years after being last constituted on October 28, 2016, when the first five Commissioners were sworn in by former President David Granger.
That allowed for a significant reduction of the role Cabinet plays in the awarding of contracts.