PARLIAMENT yesterday rejected changes to the law aimed at strengthening controls on public procurement tenders, the Pravda daily wrote.
Zuzana Wienk from the non-governmental Fair Play Alliance said this was a "disappointment, because it was the first serious attempt to limit the use of the least transparent public procurement method".
Very often, ministries and other state bodies have been criticized for using the so-called “direct method” of selecting firms for public contracts.
Contracts are not put up for public tender and are therefore open to corrupt practices. Ministries often argue that pressure of time means they have to use the direct selection process.
In 2003, as much as one half of all state orders, worth a total of Sk30 billion (€777.2 million), were realized via the direct selection process.
In 2004 the number of orders made using this method decreased to 37 percent.
Compiled by Martina Jurinová from press reports
TheSlovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the informationpresented in its Flash News postings.
