The code of conduct serves to establish the broad framework within which an action, or default, by any party to the procurement process may be judged. Any action, or default, which conflicts with the code, is unacceptable.
The following examples are not exhaustive, but serve to highlight acceptable actions and defaults that are more commonly encountered.
Conduct of the agent
The agent or his employees should:
| • | Strictly observe the code of conduct laid down by the body governing his profession. |
| • | Act in a fair and equitable manner towards all other parties in the procurement process and take account of the legitimate and reasonable rights of them all. |
| • | Not accept gifts, favours or other considerations, of anything more than token value from any other party to the procurement process. |
| • | Not unnecessarily, or through lack of diligence, cause delay by the contractor or the client in fulfilling their obligations. |
| • | Not undermine the development objectives of the employer through tokenism or fronting. |
| • | Disclose any circumstance which may possibly be construed as constituting a conflict of interest and recuse himself from deliberations in such matters. |
| • | Not engage in practices that gives one tenderer an improper advantage over another. |
Conduct of the contractor
The contractor or his employees should:
| • | Undertake the contract with the objective of satisfying the requirements of the employer by observing the spirit as well as complying with the letter of the contract and, in pursuit of this objective, co-operate with all other parties in the procurement process. |
| • | Aim to meet all statutory and contractual obligations fully and timeously in regard to conditions of employment, occupational health and safety, training, fiscal matters etc. |
| • | Not attempt to influence the judgement, or actions, of agents, employees, or representatives by inducements of any sort. |
| • | Employ subcontractors only on the basis of fair, unbiased, written subcontracts. |
| • | Not engage in unfair or unethical practices in dealings with subcontractors. |
| • | Not make spurious claims for additional payment or time. |
| • | Not approach any representative directly in connection with a contract, save for a legitimate purpose. |
| • | Not undermine the development objectives of the employer through tokenism or fronting. |
| • | Not engage in collusive practices that have direct or indirect adverse impacts on the cost of the project to the employer. |
Conduct of the employer
The employer, his employees, or agent should:
| • | Not invite tenders without having a firm intention to proceed with the procurement. |
| • | Ensure that the basis on which tenders will be evaluated is clearly set out in the tender documents and that tenders are valuated and awarded accordingly. |
| • | Employ contractors only on the basis of fair and equitable written contracts |
| • | Not accept gifts, favours or other considerations, of anything more than token value from any other party to the procurement process. |
| • | Ensure that the procurement documents are clear and comprehensive and set out the rights and obligations of all parties. |
| • | Not breach the confidentiality of information, particularly intellectual property provided by tenderers in support of their tender submissions. |
| • | Not engage in unfair or unethical practices in dealings with subcontractors including the practice of trading one subcontractor off against another in an attempt to obtain lower prices. |
| • | Ensure that all tenderers are fairly treated and that tender offers are evaluated without bias. |
| • | Ensure that transparency is maintained in the tendering process. This implies, under normal circumstance, inviting tenders as widely and publicly as possible, stating clearly any prequalification criteria and considering only those who qualify, opening tenders in public and reading out / making available key information, such as tender prices, basic award criteria and times required for completion, and, in due course, making known to unsuccessful tenderers the outcome of the evaluation process. |
| • | Ensure that his obligations in terms of contracts with contractors and agents are scrupulously and timeously met, particularly in regard to making payments and giving decisions. |
| • | Ensure that legal requirements and principles are upheld in relation to safety, health, the environment and sustainable delivery management. |
Conduct of employees
Employees should:
| • | Conduct themselves in the manner befitting the role which they are to perform in procurement. |
| • | Strictly observe any code of conduct laid down by their respective employers and the provisions of all legislation and regulations governing procurement. |
| • | Perform their duties in an unbiased and conscientious manner, bearing in mind the legitimate interest of all parties to the procurement process and where relevant, the public. |
| • | Ensure that they are not responsible for an unacceptable action, or default, being attributed to the respective employers. |
| • | Not allow themselves to be influenced in the execution of their duties by any consideration other than the legitimate and reasonable interests of the respective employers. |
| • | Not accept any gifts, favours or other considerations, of anything more than token value from any other party to the procurement process. |
| • | Where they act on behalf of an employer, administer contracts in an even handed manner. |
| • | Disclose any circumstance which may possibly be construed as constituting a conflict of interest and recuse themselves from deliberations in such matters. |
Conduct of the representative
The representative should:
| • | interest of all parties to the procurement process and the public. |
| • | Not entertain representations from any agent, tenderer, contractor, or subcontractor, in regard to a procurement, except through the employer or such person as may be delegated by the employer to act in the procurement, |
| • | Not allow himself to be unduly influenced by, or accept any gifts, favours or other considerations from any party which might have an interest in the procurement process. |
| • | Disclose any circumstance which may possibly be construed as constituting a conflict of interest and recluse himself from deliberations in such matters. |
Conduct of subcontractors
The subcontractor should, insofar as is relevant, act in the same way as the contractor is expected to act and behave in a circumspect manner and not undermine the position of any contractor that has been provided a price in relation to a particular tender.
Conduct of tenderers
| • | The tenderer, his employees or agent should: |
| • | Not, except for the purpose of joint venture formation or collective action to deal with unfair conditions or other faults in documentation, become involved in collusion with other tenderers or potential tenderers. |
| • | Not exchange information regarding tenders with any other tenderer prior to the closing time and date for tenders. |
| • | Not knowingly price his tender in such a way as to gain an unfair advantage from an obvious error or oversight, in the tender documents. |
| • | Not attempt to influence the tender evaluation process. |
| • | Not approach any representative or employee directly in connection with a tender. |
