State defends award of laptop tender to Olive

By AUGUSTINE ODUOR and KURIAN MUSA

The Government has maintained that Olive Telecommunications Limited won the school laptops tender fairly.

In a response by Education PS Bellio Kipsang during the hearing of appeals arising from the tender, the Government pushed for dismissal of the applications with cost.

Chinese firm Haier Electricals Appliances Corporation Limited, and Hewlett-Packard (HP) from Europe have appealed the decision by the ministry to award the Indian firm the lucrative Sh24.6 billion tender.

Haier raised transparency questions on the process. The firm also contested the tender pricing variations, the evaluation criteria, and non-compliance with the tender data sheet and material non-disclosure by the ministry.

The PS in his submission to the Review Appeals Board said the Indian firm is an original equipment manufacturer that met all the procurement requirements.

Responding to the issues raised by HP, Dr Kipsang said they have not demonstrated how the procurement entity breached the act of its regulations.