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The Special Investigation Service (STT), which conducted a corruption risk analysis in Vilnius city, Švenčionys district municipalities and Trakai when organizing environmental management work, found that employees of these municipalities had too much discretion to organize the hiring of such jobs, so there is no legal regulation and control of procedures, according to the report.
The analysis of the risk of corruption has shown that in individual cases, decisions about the acquisition of environmental management services or works in municipalities are taken without an exhaustive analysis of needs and without clear criteria on the purpose and usefulness of the acquisition of plays. For example, cases have been identified where Švenčionys d. In the municipality, companies that did not meet the minimum requirements of the service purchased, did not have the necessary equipment for environmental management works, or did not even provide such services, were interviewed as potential suppliers. This situation does not sufficiently ensure the transparency of the contracting of environmental management works, and the aforementioned circumstances allow the presumption of intentional selection of suppliers. The Trakai and Švenčionys districts were also identified. Undeclared relationships of municipal representatives with legal entities that have obtained public bids for the performance of environmental management works.
At that time, before purchasing services for the production and installation of plywood panels from salts, the Vilnius City Municipality did not carry out a justification of need and cost analysis, and did not conduct public consultations. with scientists or other specialists to assess the need for panels and their likely benefits. The corruption risk analysis revealed that snow cleared from the road surface with impurities from technical salt and other harmful substances was dumped into tree fences, which are specifically designed to protect trees from the mechanical spread of substances that dissolve snow.
When evaluating the contracting of municipal environmental management works, a trend was found when the services or works were purchased from a single supplier. For example, when analyzing the city of Vilnius. The municipality’s contracting of low-value landscaping works, which was also carried out through unannounced negotiations, also drew attention to the fact that the municipality often submitted proposals to invite the same works contracts. of high value landscaping to win and dominate the market.
STT notes that single-vendor purchases are risky, restrict competition, and are open to abuse. Especially when purchases are based on a special urgency, although the need was known in advance. 2018 December Vilnius city the municipality did not start the purchase of shark salt through private negotiations until the beginning of the winter season and did not prepare for it in advance, when the prices of basic products were possibly lower in the market and more suppliers could participate in the purchase without urgency.
There is an uneven practice in Vilnius. in the accounting documents for the execution of works and services provided by the municipal company UAB Grinda, and the execution itself does not always reflect the amounts of works performed and services provided. Not all acts of acceptance-transfer of works can clearly and unequivocally identify which works were actually performed or which services were provided and determine their quantities. From the STT’s point of view, this can be used to manipulate accounting data, such as the inclusion of higher volumes of work or services in official accounts, increasing the risk of fraudulent deals and the likelihood of corruption.
When evaluating the supervision of the works, it was established that although Švenčionys and Trakai d. The municipal elders carry out inspections of the activities of the environmental management companies, the municipal laws do not establish the bases for the organization and implementation of the supervision and control of environmental management works. Furthermore, these activities are not documented and may not meet the requirements for acceptance of works.
The STT suggested that municipalities clearly establish in national legislation the criteria for choosing the public procurement method: an unpublished or published survey. It is also necessary to strengthen the control of the activities of employees who initiate public contracting, so that decisions on the contracting of certain goods, services or works are not taken individually, but after evaluating the need and supporting it with the documents suitable.
The municipalities of the city of Vilnius, the districts of Švenčionys and Trakai must inform the STT within 3 months how the submitted proposals have been taken into account or are expected to be taken into account.
