Ombudsman report clears Brampton of misconduct

15 best practices to ensure transparency part of the report

Bramptonguardian.com
March 7, 2017
By Radhika Panjwani

A much-awaited Ontario Ombudsman's report into Brampton’s non-competitive procurement process has cleared the city of any wrongdoing.

The investigation, which focused on the $29-million non-competitive (single-source) contracts the city awards to suppliers each year, unearthed no red flags, but offered several suggestions on how Brampton could improve its practices.

Ontario Ombudsman Paul Dube’s report released March 6 is the first systemic investigation involving a municipality.

However, it was the city that invited the Ombudsman to investigate potential misconduct in its procurement process.

“Our office found no evidence of maladministration in the city’s purchasing bylaws, policies or procedures, in the documents we reviewed or in any of our interviews with staff,” noted Dube in the report. “Although I did not find any maladministration, I believe this case presents a good opportunity for Brampton and other municipalities to consider improvements to their procurement processes.”

Dube’s office categorically stated the scope of its investigation was not Brampton’s contentious Southwest Quadrant project as that already has been reviewed and remains the subject of pending litigation.

So, what exactly is a non-competitive process? Typically, procurement processes are categorized into competitive and non-competitive groups. In competitive procurement, bids and tenders are invited so that there’s a best value; in the non-competitive procurement process like the one practised by Brampton, the city either selects the company it wishes to buy from or restricts the bidding process to certain suppliers.

The scrutiny by the Ombudsman’s office included interviews with some 30 former and current city employees, as well as the review of documents and best practices in other jurisdictions.

Investigators said the city’s purchasing policy could be improved through training of staff and council, followup on internal audits, and the role of the city’s audit committee. In all, 15 recommendations to enhance transparency and public were offered.

“Since 2014, the city has taken numerous proactive steps to strengthen our procurement practices following past procurements of concern,” Mayor Linda Jeffrey said in a press release. “The Ombudsman report acknowledges the city’s ongoing reorganization and suggests we have a unique opportunity to continue to strengthen the structure of the City’s audit function and to enhance its effectiveness, independence, and impartiality.”

Making a note of the myriad issues of strife and discontentment swirling at city hall, the Ontario Ombudsman report recommends Brampton embrace a culture of transparency.

“The city of Brampton’s recent past is filled with controversy, leading some members of the public, as well as members of council, to lose trust in the city,” Dube says in the report. “Establishing an independent, permanent auditor general would help re-establish the public’s confidence in the city and ensure that the public trusts the city to act fairly, accountably and transparently.”

You can read the full report here.