Pakistan Court Cancels Track-And-Trace Contract

A court in Pakistan canceled a multi-million dollar track-and-trace contract for tobacco products after complaints that the company awarded the contract was given undue preferential treatment.

The National Radio and Telecommunication Corp. (NRTC) was awarded the contract after submitting a very low bid. The bid was apparently in error, and the NRTC was allowed to correct the bid before the contract was awarded. According to the rules, the contract should have been awarded to the next lowest bidder following the error.

“If modifications in financial bids are allowed after the results of the bidding were made known … it would afford a pretext for unscrupulous bidders to prey on the public,” the judge stated in his decision.