Africa-Press – Malawi. Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) has written the Minister of Homeland Security, Richard Chimwendo Banda, asking him to facilitate the cancellation or variation of the contract the government entered into with Techno Brain Global FZE for the upgrade of the passport issuance system and introduction of electronic passport under Build Operate Transfer (BOT) model.
The coalition argues the contract was designed in such a way that it favours Techno Brain Global FZE at the expense of the interests of Malawians. On 22 March 2019, the Government of Malawi, acting through its Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services entered into a contract with Techno Brain Global FZE in respect of the upgrade of the passport issuance system and introduction of electronic passport under BOT model.
The contract entailed that the company would supply of 80, 0000 electronic passports at a cost of US$60,800,000. But HRDC chairperson Gift Trapence, in a letter he has co-signed with other activists, including Michael Kaiyatsa, says after reviewing the contract, the human rights watchdog feels the contract was tailored to favour the contractor.
“In such commercial contracts, the limitation of liability is normally 10 percent of the contract price but Clause 24 of the contract put limitation of liability at USD500,000. In Clause 49, the payments are not linked to the passports issued. There is no performance bond guarantee and there is no advance payment guarantee. This means that payments are due whether the contractor is performing or not,” reads the letter in part.
“There is no provision for liquidated damages in the contract to cover delays by the contractor in the event that the contractor fails or delays in issuing passports during the period of the contract. Contracting pricing in such contracts is normally divided into three parts: Cost of installation and software including licenses, Program management and Cost of each passport issued,” it adds.
HRDC says this would have allowed the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services to link part 3 to the passports issued and covered the risks of delays.
The coalition emphasizes that these are elementary points that Controlling Officers in both the Ministry of Homeland Security and Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services needed to know.
“The Controlling Officers signed this contract as signatory and witness respectively. They failed in their fiduciary duty to safeguard public funds,” observes Trapence and his follow activists.
“HRDC is aware that on 8 October 2020, the World Bank debarred Techno Brain Global FZE in connection with collusive and fraudulent practices in Liberia. Making them ineligible to participate in projects and operations financed by institutions of the World Bank Group. While the contract for electronic passports is not financed by the World Bank, we hold the view that this debarment points to a serious risk of doing business with Techno Brain Global FZE and probably explains why this contract is skewed towards them,” thus concludes the letter. Chimwendo Banda was not immediately available to confirm receipt of the letter.
