SHILLONG: The Khun Hynniewtrep National Awakening Movement (KHNAM) has called the attempt of NEIGRIHMS to defend the purchase of heavy medical equipment through an outside firm without trade license from the Council as unsatisfactory.
In a statement issued here, the KHNAM youth wing president, Thomas Passah Passah, said that the KHADC should make a legal stand on the said comments of the officiating director of NEIGRIHMS.
He said, “The hospital authority has admitted that ‘the rule in NEIGRIHMS says clearly that any company tendering for supply or work has to have a trading license”.
“It is clear that the company/firm, which has been entrusted with the NEIGRIHMS work, does not have a trading license, therefore the tender should be cancelled and others be given preference”, he added.
Passah said that the regional party had raised objections to the purchase of two air decontamination units by the NEIGRIHMS through an outside firm without the trade license.
They party also expressed doubts over malpractice in finalising the tender for purchase of the equipment as a local bidder with a low-cost quotation was rejected over a much-expensive quoted price of an outside firm.
“We are very much aware that the equipment is not manufactured in the country and any firm selected will have to import the said equipment”, he said.
Passah said that the officiating director of NEIGRIHMS has carelessly used the support of the present emergency situation and the safety of the institute’s medical staff for justification.
The KHNAM objected to the purchase while alleging that the tender to an outside company could be to gain personal benefits which amounts to corruption.
On the officiating director’s justification with regard to trading license that “the company supplying the equipment had called up the KHADC office but there was no one to attend to the phone calls”, Passah said that the procedure of applying for a trade license is in hand and not over the phone.
