PDN editorializes about procurement accountability

The Guam Pacific Daily News has helped to keep procurement issues in the limelight in today's Editorial:

Improve: Hold accountable all those who violate procurement laws

An audit report last week showed that the government of Guam continues to fail to follow its own rules and regulations for procurement. This irresponsible practice will continue until elected officials begin holding government employees accountable for these failures.

These procurement problems persist because elected officials have thus far refused to hold the employees responsible for their actions.

But there's nothing inherently wrong with GovGuam's procurement rules and regulations. The problem is that GovGuam employees aren't following those rules and regulations. And, worse yet, elected officials are letting them get away with it by refusing to hold responsible employees accountable for that failure.

This community deserves better. We need to be able to expect that government officials will spend our tax money responsibly and in accordance with its own rules and regulations. That won't happen until and unless our elected officials do their jobs and hold government employees accountable when they don't follow procurement rules and regulations.

See, also : OPA: Procurement rules skipped