CONTRACT FOR PROCUREMENT OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES AWARDED TO SMARTMATIK COMPANY DESPITE NOT OFFERING LOWEST PRICE

SARAJEVO, MARCH 19 /SRNA/ – A consortium headed by Smartmatik BiH Company has been awarded a contract for the procurement of equipment for a biometric voter identification system and ballot scanning, worth BAM 74.5 million excluding VAT, the Central Election Commission /CEC/ of BiH has decided today.

CEC member Vlado Rogić voted against the decision, who said it was unlawful and pointed out that Smartmatik's bid was BAM 17 million higher than the offer submitted by a group headed by Banja Luka-based Planetsoft.

"Eliminating the company from Banja Luka in such a situation is unfair and illegal, especially considering what the CEC could have done with BAM 17 million," Rogić stated at the session.

He emphasized that the CEC had incorrectly assessed that Planetsoft Company did not meet the legal requirements in terms of providing and fulfilling the technical documentation.

Rogić also noted that the advantages of the group headed by Planetsoft Company were that they had no subcontractors and that they offered the lowest price.

Other CEC members' position is that the consortium's bid is the most favourable and that the group, which also includes Smartmatik Netherlands and DSC Sarajevo, meets all the conditions set out in the tender documentation.

An appeal against this decision is allowed within ten days, and the contract, if it becomes legally binding, will be awarded for a period of four years.