Top court dismisses hostel food tender appeal
The Namibian Supreme Court has invalidated a multimillion-dollar government tender for school hostel food supplies. The court ruled that the procurement process was unlawful because the board continued to issue awards after the bid validity period had expired.
Why it matters
This ruling highlights critical issues in public procurement governance and the legal necessity for strict adherence to administrative timelines in government contracts.
The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal by the Central Procurement Board of Namibia and the education ministry, invalidating a multimillion-dollar tender for government school hostel food.
The top court yesterday dismissed the appeal by the procurement board (CPBN) and the Ministry of Education, Innovation,
Youth, Sport, Arts and Culture, upholding a High Court decision that set aside the multimillion-dollar procurement process for supplying food to government school hostels across Namibia.
In the Supreme Court’s judgment, deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb, with chief justice Peter Shivute and acting judge of appeal Theo Frank concurring, found that the procurement process had continued after the validity period of the bids had expired and that the CPBN no longer had the legal authority to proceed.
The tender was for the supply and delivery of food to government school hostels for three years.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in