The Office of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) is recommending that the Secretariat of the Cabinet look into the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration's (BMA) 3.99-billion-baht projects to lease electric rubbish trucks to prevent corruption.
NACC chairman Pol Gen Watcharapol Prasarnrajkit submitted a letter to the Secretariat of the Cabinet on Monday to provide it with recommendations on what it should look out for to prevent corruption in the projects.
The NACC, the letter said, received complaints calling for checks on four BMA plans to lease a total of 842 electric garbage trucks for five years to replace the current diesel trucks whose lease contracts will end this year. The four projects are worth 3.99 billion baht in total, with the projects' funds allocated in the last fiscal year.
The letter suggests the projects could be non-compliant with BMA budget regulations, and modifications to the projects could result in the BMA bearing higher costs.
Concerns about uncertainties in the project management are also mentioned in the letter.
The uncertainties lie in the specifications of the electric garbage trucks, the scope of the lease, the cost of building and managing charging stations, the capacity and maintenance costs and pilot projects for the trucks.
These uncertainties could result in the incapability of the electric trucks, the exclusion of a truck supplier and negative effects on the BMA's solid waste management, according to the letter.
So, the NACC provided the BMA and the cabinet with three suggestions to prevent corruption in the projects according to Section 35 of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption 2018, which allows the NACC to investigate any case it believes could be corrupt.
In the first suggestion, the NACC said the new projects will result in significant changes to the type of solid waste collection trucks the BMA is leasing. As a result, the projects should fall outside the Bangkok governor's authority.
The NACC also suggested the specifications sought for the trucks should be connected to the effectiveness of the trucks, to provide all truck suppliers with equal opportunities in the bidding.
The NACC also said the BMA should develop clear and effective management plans for the projects. A lack of planning would affect the BMA's intended objectives, it said.
