The ironic truth of transparency

The Transparency Blunder

The Instituto da Construção e Imobiliário (InCI), a governmental organization responsible for the execution of the Code of Public Contracts, developed a portal whereby the main objective was to bring transparency to Public awarded contracts with the aim of bringing some consistency to the contracts and put an end to the continuous overspend and lack of respect for contracted timings. Microsoft, as consultant to the Ministry of Public Works, was chosen, albeit without respecting the public tender process owing to the apparent urgency, seems to have a different interpretation of the events and the underlying objectives.

The value of adjudication was 268,800 €. If the process lacks the inherent transparency advocated, the fact that the project is now already well over the budget, you have to wonder what the price of transparency really is. Preaching is easy though it would seem that implementation is harder than expected.

Ponce de Leão, Presidente of the InCI during this process seems to have been replaced and the InCI, in typical transparent mode, is keeing silent. “No comment” seems the most absurd of all actions to take at this point. I would hazard a guess that someone decided to exemplify in the most rudimentary form, what happens when there is no transparency. A great case study thank you.

More information in Portuguese: Portal das obras públicas adjudicado sem concurso