After discovering that government officials had fixed a bidding process for companies interested in operating fishing lots on the Mekong River, Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday annulled the results of the bidding and rescheduled it for next year. Speaking at a plenary session at the Council of Ministers, Mr Hun Sen said that next year’s bidding process would now be monitored by the Anti-Corruption Unit to make sure that only the most competitive companies win the licenses to operate lucrative fish breeding lots. “Prime Minister Hun Sen has decided to cancel the results to the bidding for seven fishing lots located in Kompong Cham, Prey Veng and Takeo provinces organized by the Agriculture Ministry,” the Council of Ministers said in a statement. Earlier this month, Mr Hun Sen ordered Agriculture Minister Chan Sarun to explain the irregularities that had taken place during the bidding process. The bid scandal was first highlighted in a report given to the prime minister by Water Resource Minister Lim Kean Hor, which detailed how government officials had fixed the process to ensure certain companies won bids. According to the report, one firm won a fishing lot in Kompong Cham province with a 315 million riel or about $79,000, bid for the contract, despite another firm having offered a higher bid of 330 million riel, or about $81,000. Fishery experts also said that prior to the bidding process’s starting, only a small number of firms had been informed about the opportunity to apply for a license. “There was no transparency for the bidding for fishing lots,” Said Om Savath, executive director of the Fisheries Action Coalition Team, an NGO that supports local fisheries. He added that the recent bidding for licenses had been carried out behind closed doors and with no public consultation. Sam Nov, deputy director of the Fisheries Administration, declined to comment on the bid-rigging.
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