The BDF Needs New Gear. Will Latest Tender Prevent a “Mira Millions 2.0”? 

The Ministry of National Defence and Border Security released an invitation to bid last Thursday for new Belize Defence Force uniforms and kit, exactly the kind of open, competitive process a ministry is expected to run. But the timing lands under a magnifying glass, with the ministry still under audit over past procurement practices.

The invitation to bid, published by the Government of Belize Press Office, covers four lots: 8,000 camouflage jacket and trouser sets, 1,000 pairs of jungle boots, 1,000 jungle bergens and 1,000 sets of jungle webbing. Bidders may submit for one or more lots. 

But what guarantees this bid would actually be fair, and not granted to already politically affiliated or favoured suppliers? We put that question to Chief Executive Officer Francis Usher today.

Usher assured of built-in safeguards in the process. He said the latest tender is being conducted through the government’s open procurement process, with mechanisms intended to prevent favouritism. 

“You must be a qualified bidder, that the bids are properly assessed, evaluated when submitted to the Ministry of Finance and thereafter the Contractor General,” he said.

News 5 also pressed CEO Usher on whether those same safeguards failed in the past, given the ongoing Mira Millions audit. However, Usher declined to answer directly, stating, “I think you’re jumping ahead to the findings of the audit. We should wait for the findings of the audit before we jump to any conclusion.” 

He added, “All of these are steps in the process that ensure that the process is open, it’s fair, and that we get quality for the Belize Defense Force.”

Usher said the tender itself is part of a three-year recruitment and re-equipping strategy approved by the National Security Council and Cabinet.