Gijima vindicated in a contract for the Provision of Maintenance and Support for PBX Systems for the SAPS unlawfully awarded by SITA to IN2IT.
• The South African leading ICT provider has been vindicated in the Gauteng Local Division High Court for a PBX Systems contract for the South Africa Police Services
• Gijima and AVS are the only entities that satisfy the tender requirements.
• In2IT could not satisfy the bid requirements in respect of the NEC and Mitel models, it could not satisfy the mandatory requirements of the tender.
• In2IT wrongfully quoted the price below market standard as a way to manipulate the bid award.
Gijima, the 100% Black South African owned, Level 1 B-BBEE has been vindicated in the Gauteng Local Division High Court. On Thursday 21 October 2021, judgment was handed down awarding Gijima Holdings (Pty) Ltd together with its partner, Advanced Voice Systems (Pty) Ltd, the contract for the Provision of Maintenance and Support for PBX Systems for the South African Police Services (SAPS) which had been unlawfully awarded by SITA to In2IT Technologies (Pty) Ltd, a multinational from India with a branch in South Africa. Gijima’s attorneys, Nicqui Galaktiou Inc, initiated a review application pursuant to the awarding of the contract to In2IT in December 2020 by SITA. Rightly aggrieved by the decision, Gijima exercised its constitutional right to challenge the unlawfully awarded contract. Gijima is pleased that the Court considered the procurement laws and regulations in its judgment which boosts confidence in the justice system and adjudication laws of tender bids. In validating Gijima’s decision to challenge unlawful award, it was also awarded legal costs.
Commenting on Gijima’s application, Justice Windell concluded that, “Gijima and AVS are the only entities that satisfy the tender requirements. They are the only entities authorized to service and maintain the specific NEC and Mitel models mentioned above, and they are also authorized to service and maintain the remaining models covered by the tender (other NEC and Ericsson models, as well as Siemens). There was ample evidence at its disposal to demonstrate that In2IT did not comply with the requirements of the tender. SITA should then have excluded In2IT from further evaluation. Ultimately, that being the case, the comparative price of Gijima and In2IT is irrelevant to the outcome of this review.” In light of Gijima having submitted a compliant bid to the tender specifications, the Court granted the relief sought by substituting Gijima as the successful bidder in the place of IN2IT who wrongfully misled SITA by deliberately quoting a price far below market value which excluded some mandatory services. Justice Windell confirmed in her lengthy reasons for granting the relief that “Gijima has adduced detailed evidence on the issue of price and has demonstrated that SITA’s assessment of price resulted in an approach that compared apples with oranges (and grossly underestimated In2IT’s true cost). Moreover, in its replying affidavit, it has pared down its price to come in under the budget.”
Gijima is looking forward to again working with SAPS and SITA in executing the contract. We note that IN2IT has indicated that it intends to apply for leave to appeal this judgment notwithstanding that it has grossly failed to comply with the tender bid requirements and therefore makes a mockery of the judiciary. An application for leave to appeal is not an automatic right granted to a party wishing to appeal a judgment (fait accompli) and IN2IT would therefore have to convince the Court that its failure to comply with the mandatory tender bid requirements was not material in terms of procurement laws. SITA on the other hand has to comply with the PFMA and procurement laws in respect of its mandatory requirements of the tender. SITA has been ordered by the judge that it has 30 days within which to engage with Gijima to conclude a memorandum of agreement, reflecting the terms.” Reflecting on the judgement, Gijima Group’s CEO, Maphum Nxumalo said, “We are pleased with the judgment as it confirms that in terms of the services required, we were the only bidder, together with our partner AVS, that satisfy the tender requirements.” Nxumalo added, the Judge further indicated that, “In2IT did not comply with the mandatory
requirements and the implication is that In2IT should have been treated as non-responsive. As only one compliant bidder remains, namely Gijima, it is submitted that the court is in as good a position as the decision maker to make a decision.” In addition, Nxumalo held that “we further pride ourselves in continuously adhering to the bid standards as well as delivering top drawer services to our clients in both public and private sectors where we enhance their business process whilst saving costs. This has been evident by the recent OEM awards we have won with our key partners including SAP: 2021 Quality Awards program for Healthcare in the “Time to Value” and Innovation category, Microsoft: Managing Director Partner of the Year 2021 and recently Huawei: Partner of the Year South Africa 2021.” Gijima has recently undergone some changes and made major acquisitions to cement itself as the go-to service provider for ICT service in South Africa, with its eye focused on African expansion as well as global clientele. The company is pursuing a joint strategy of organic growth and strategic acquisitions as it aims to consolidate IT services companies in Africa. “Having been in the industry for 27 years, we remain dedicated to providing the best, affordable and exceptional services to all our clients bringing along the best international IP, innovation, partners and skills. We are a strategic partner for clients; digital transformation journey, cloud computing, cyber security, Tier 3 Cyber Defense Centre
(datacenter) and system integration. With that said, we are confident in what we do and offer our valuable clients uncontested service as we know that we will not disappoint.” concludes Nxumalo.
ENDS// Issued by:
Roberta J. Gumede
Chief Marketing & Communications Officer
Gijima
010 449 5000