… says no drug tender was advertisedKaieteur News’ contention that the tender for which there were two pre-selected bidders was never advertised is being supported by International Pharmaceutical Agency (IPA) another pharmaceutical importer.In the wake of the publication, the Ministry of Health lashed out saying that the government did advertise the tender on October 22,Alexis Sanchez Jersey, last year. IPA says that this is a “blatant lie.”The bids opened for the supply and delivery of drugs and medical supplies for the Ministry of Health were tendered by the New Guyana Pharmaceutical Corporation whose bid was $348M and Medpharm whose bid was $13M.Lloyd Singh,Cheap Jerseys From China, the Chief Executive Officer of International Pharmaceutical Agency located on Camp Street,Wholesale NBA Jerseys Authentic, said, “They had asked us to supply documentation on items. They never asked for quantity and prices so how could you have a tender out.”Health Minister Dr Ramsammy had said that only pre-qualified bids were accepted but Singh dismissed this notion saying that IPA is pre-qualified and presented documentation showing that the company has been supplying drugs to the Ministry.He said that his company has been doing so since 2006. He added that as recent as last Friday, the Health Ministry placed a large order with his company.“We are pre-qualified…we have been supplying the government…if we are not pre-qualified why is the government sending us purchase orders. Look, we got one last week Wednesday.”Singh produced more than 60 purchase orders for the last two months. “How could we be not pre-qualified if you are still buying from us…It was never tendered out.”He also provided this newspaper with the minutes of a meeting held on November 4,Air Max 2019 Offerta, 2010 while the government and five suppliers were still discussing prequalification for the supply and delivery of the more than 400 items.He said that there were queries by suppliers at that meeting.“How could he have had a tender out when we were still discussing clarification and prequalification? How could he say that there was a tender out? That’s a blatant lie.”Singh said that it is important that the government and the companies were discussing? pre-qualification on November 4,Cheap MLB Jerseys Free Shipping, 2010 even as Dr Ramsammy said that ht tenders were advertised on October 22, 2010.As it relates to IPA’s ability to supply the items requested Singh said, “We have been providing drugs to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars over the last 10 years…That is part of our prequalification.”Singh charged that the Ministry of Health is spending tax-payers money and if there was prequalification of tenders and allocation of funds it must go through a level and transparent process.He said that Dr Ramsammy can’t decide that “they are going to take the tax payers money and, spend it how they feel like.”Singh further stated that New GPC alone cannot supply all the medicine. “For the past decade ‘blanket cheques’ have been going to GPC even before the goods were supplied.”The IPA CEO said that the government cannot claim that it was pre-selecting given that he is confident that IPA provides drugs at a cheaper price.? “If the minister is saying that they give NGPC based on prices then that is a blatant lie.” Singh said, “We have been in this business for 20 years. You cannot manufacture medicine in Guyana; there is no serious manufacturing plant in the Caribbean because we can’t compete with the Asian block…We have to import and we have to distribute.”Singh said that for the past ten years NGPC has been importing and supplying drugs but only five percent of the medicine it supplies is locally produced in terms of cough syrup and other liquids.Speaking to the company’s ability to supply Singh said,Brice Butler Jersey, “Let them say when they ask us to supply and we never supply. Let them say when they gave IPA a tender and we couldn’t supply…How did they come up with only Medpharm and NGPC as the only two pre-qualified bidders?”Singh said, “There is no transparency here and somebody has to tell the public how 400-plus items we are talking about will be supplied.”