Eco House-Group received at least three government contracts for the construction of medical facilities without calling for bids. The contracts' total price is over 403 billion soums. However, according to the Public Procurement Law, contracts worth over 6.8 billion soums cannot be awarded without a tender.

By order of the State Unitary Enterprise "Tibbiyot Qurilish Engineering" of the Ministry of Health, the second phase of a 140-bed perinatal center project and a 160-bed Mother and Child Care Center are underway in Tashkent.

According to the Telegram channel davletovuz, in accordance with the 2021 approved target program, the psrice of these two facilities is at 189.5 billion soums. Contracts were awarded without competition, with a bare pursuance for a government resolution.

In line with Article 59 of the Public Procurement Law, public procurement through a tender shall be carried out when the price of goods (works, services) is over twenty-five thousand basic units ​​under one contract - which is over 6 billion 750 million soums.

Eco House-Group LLC has been awarded the contracts. The company, founded in 2018, has on several ocassions changed its name. It previously functioned as Whitecity Construction and Renaissance Company. The company is quite famous, in particular, after the tragedy at the Sardoba dam, the projects of 20 apartment buildings in the “Shodlik” makhalla of Akaltyn district was awarded to Whitecity Construction.

Even earlier, the same company built residential buildings in Ak-Tepe of the Chilanzar district, monolithic houses in the Sergeli district, buildings for teachers on the territory of the Student City.

It, and again without a tender, became the general contractor for the Tashkent Pharma Park research and production pharmaceutical cluster project in Zangiata district, having received permission for both design and construction. the Uzbekistan Fund for Reconstruction and Development will contribute  $ 50 million for the implementation of this project. The company has been awarded a 213.5 billion soums worth of contract.

In 2020, the same company was gifted 357.6 billion soums for the University of Geological Sciences reconstruction project. This contract was also awarded without holding a tender whatsoever, solely by a government document.

According to the register of legal entities, 82.4% stake of Eco House-Group LLC belongs to Asatov Nodirjon Khudoiberdi ogli, and 17.6% belongs to Mirvohitov Mirsaid Mirfatukh ogli. Until mid-2020, 40 percent of the company belonged to Ismail Israilov. Later he transferred his share to the above persons.

Ismail Israilov, a former director of Akfa Engineering Management, which owns 66.9% of Discovery Invest (Power Construction Planet), is also known for participating in a number of tenders with signs of conflict of interest. Just one example of this is the victory in the tender announced by the Tashkent mayor’s office for a  reconstruction project of an appartment building in Yakkasaray district worth 35.5 billion soums.

Israilov also holds interestz in Zo’r TV and Radio Company (31.2 percent) and Kolorpak (25 percent).

As reported earlier, a number of projects financed from the state budget in Tashkent were transferred to Discovery Invest without a tender.

For reference: Whitecity Construction brand belongs to J-United Group LLC, which belongs to the Tashkent city mayor Jakhongir Artykhodjaev.

In accordance with the August 13, 2019 presidential decree, ministries and departments, as well as local economic management and executive authorities are instructed to:

• take effective measures to rigorously ensure transparency and competition in public procurement carried out by all state customers through the wide involvement of business entities in the public procurement process in strict accordance with the requirements of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On public procurement";
• to categorically prohibit the practice of introducing orders of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan that do not comply with this Law, including in the form of protocol orders, providing for the possibility of direct purchases from a single supplier that are not provided for by the Law.

The resolution also prohibits the preparation and submission to the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan of drafts of legal acts providing for the provision of an exclusive procedure for entering into direct contracts in the course of public procurement.

According to the law, impartiality and competitiveness of public procurement is based on the provision of equal opportunities to participants.

Sevara Yusupova

Columnist, Economy and Public Finances