By Chidi Nkwopara
Imo State government has said the Public Procurement Bill passed by the State House of Assembly will help to restore transparency and accountability in governance.

Special Adviser  to Governor Ikedi Ohakim on Economic Affairs and Due Process, Mr. Chuks Chukwuemeka, stated this while fielding questions from journalists in Owerri.

He said with this legislation in place, government was now repositioned to tackle such fraudulent practices as inflation of contracts, abandonment of projects and award of contracts to incompetent individuals and firms.

He explained that the Public Procurement Act made it mandatory for the relevant ministries, agencies, departments and parastatals to participate fully in the award and execution of projects and services in the state.

The SA equally warned that any public official who contravened any section of the Act would lose his or her position as government was very determined to completely sanitize its operations.

The Economic Adviser to the governor commended the lawmakers for their courage in the passage of the Bill, noting that the sensitive nature of the legislation had continued to make it difficult for many Houses of Assembly to domesticate the Bill, which had been passed by the National Assembly.

Vanguard recalls that the Bill which was presented to the House in 2008, was passed by the State House of Assembly last month, after scaling through all  legislative hurdles.