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Quality Inspection Services Inc. Japan v Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) and 2 Others (Civil Appeal 37 of 2024)

High Court · [2024] UGHCCD 157 · 2024 Appeal Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Appeal from the decision of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Appeals Tribunal in Application No. 9 of 2024 delivered on 11th March 2024
Decision
Contracts awarded to the 2nd and 3rd Respondents set aside; only the Appellant confirmed as best evaluated bidder

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court allowed the appeal, finding that the 1st Respondent failed to subject the bids of the 2nd and 3rd Respondents to the detailed evaluation stages required by law. In the absence of a proper evaluation report and corresponding minutes recommending the 2nd and 3rd Respondents for contract award, there was no factual or legal basis for the Tribunal to determine their bids responsive. The contracts awarded to the 2nd and 3rd Respondents were set aside, and only the Appellant was confirmed as the best evaluated bidder.

Outcome

Contracts awarded to the 2nd and 3rd Respondents set aside; only the Appellant confirmed as best evaluated bidder

Facts

The 1st Respondent initiated an emergency procurement for pre-export verification of conformity to standards services for used motor vehicles. The Appellant, 2nd, and 3rd Respondents submitted bids. The Appellant was initially determined as the best evaluated bidder. Following an administrative review challenge by the 2nd and 3rd Respondents, the PPDA Appeals Tribunal directed re-evaluation. The 1st Respondent re-evaluated and awarded contracts to all three bidders. The Appellant challenged the award to the 2nd and 3rd Respondents before the PPDA Appeals Tribunal, which dismissed the application. The Appellant then appealed to the High Court, arguing that the evaluation process was defective and that no proper evaluation report existed supporting the award to the 2nd and 3rd Respondents.

Issues

  1. Whether the PPDA Appeals Tribunal erred in law in holding that the bids of the 2nd and 3rd Respondents had passed the detailed stage of evaluation contrary to Regulation 19 of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets (Evaluation) Regulations, 2023.
  2. Whether the Tribunal erred in law in holding that the bids of the 2nd and 3rd Respondents were responsive to the requirements of the bidding document in the absence of a corresponding duly signed evaluation report and minutes for the impugned procurement.
  3. Whether the Tribunal erred in law in holding that the 2nd and 3rd Respondents were rightfully determined as best evaluated bidders and recommended for award of contract in the impugned procurement.
  4. Whether grounds of appeal 4, 5, and 6 raise questions of law only or mixed law and fact.

Orders

  • Appeal allowed.
  • Decision of the PPDA Appeals Tribunal set aside.
  • Contracts entered into by the 1st Respondent with the 2nd and 3rd Respondents set aside.
  • The 1st Respondent ordered to refund the administrative review fees in respect to the application for administrative review dated 1st February 2024 to the Appellant.
  • Administrative review fees to attract interest of 20% per annum from the date of judgment.
  • Costs of the Appeal awarded to the Appellant against the 1st Respondent.
  • Names of the 2nd and 3rd Respondents struck off from the Notice of Best Evaluated Bidder issued by the 1st Respondent on January 31, 2024.

Rules and key headnotes

Public Procurement — Evaluation Requirements — Mandatory Nature of Evaluation Reports
A procurement process is successive and asynchronous in nature; one cannot move to another stage without fulfilling the first. Where a procuring entity fails to subject bids to detailed evaluation as required by law and produces no evaluation report recommending bidders for contract award, any subsequent award is illegal and contrary to procurement procedures.
Public Procurement — Evaluation Report — Mandatory Requirements
Upon conclusion of an evaluation process, the evaluation committee must duly complete an evaluation report using the prescribed form, signed by all members, with minutes annexed. The report must include a brief narrative on detailed evaluation results, justification for non-responsive bids, details of clarifications requested, and summaries entered in the prescribed tables. This report forms part of submissions to the Contracts Committee.
Public Procurement — Sequential Evaluation Stages — Mandatory Compliance
In non-consultancy services procurement using Technical Compliance Selection methodology, evaluation must be conducted in three sequential stages: (a) preliminary examination of eligibility and administrative compliance; (b) detailed evaluation of commercial and technical responsiveness; and (c) financial comparison. A bid that complies with technical criteria may be recommended for contract award only after passing all preceding stages.
Appeals — Questions of Law — Distinction from Mixed Law and Fact
An appeal on a point of law arises when the court whose decision is being appealed made a finding on the case but got the relevant law wrong or applied it wrongly. The court reaches a conclusion outside the range it would have arrived at had it properly directed itself as to the applicable law. Whether a ground of appeal raises a question of law does not depend on its label but on the substance of the complaint.
Public Procurement — Record-Keeping — Mandatory Duty of Procuring Entity
A procuring entity has a mandatory duty to maintain and archive records of the procurement and disposal process. Any person reviewing a procurement action file should be able to understand how the evaluation committee conducted the evaluation in a chronological manner by reading the evaluation report and annexed minutes.

Legislation cited (21)

Cases cited (4)

  • Kifamunte Henry v Uganda (Supreme Court Criminal Appeal No. 10 of 1997)
  • N.N.P.C v Famfa Oil Ltd (2012) 17 NWLR (pt 1328) p. 148(SC)
  • Lubanga Jamada v Dr Ddumba Edward (Civil Appeal No. 10 of 2011)
  • Galleria in Africa Limited v Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (Civil Appeal No. 8 of 2017)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Quality Inspection Services Inc. Japan v Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) and 2 Others (Civil Appeal 37 of 2024) [2024] UGHCCD 157 (4 October 2024)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.