Moira Shire Council independent administrator John Tanner has defended the way the council goes about tendering for contracts, saying trust is key.
The comments came on the back of the tendering process for waste disposal services, for which the shire came under some public criticism.
Mr Tanner, during the council meeting of Wednesday, May 24, said that though the council strives for transparency as much as possible, public tenders and the decision-making process behind them could not be made public.
“There is commercial confidentiality and probity regulations associated with tenders,” Mr Tanner said.
Mr Tanner went on to say that tenderers would submit information under the proviso that it remains confidential and that any public consultation would breach accountability and transparency governance regulations.
“We, as council, have both a legal and moral obligation to ensure that the trust tenderers put in us is upheld,” he said.
“We cannot, and I certainly will not, breach any confidentiality associated with any such arrangements.”
Mr Tanner went on to say that tenderers and the public must also respect the confidential nature of the tendering process.
“All parties who enter into a tender process also understand this, or should understand it, because they fully sign-on and enter into a confidentiality agreement,” Mr Tanner said.
“There is no public tender process that permits community consultation. It is as simple as that.”
Mr Tanner also sought to reassure the Moira Shire community that all tendering processes were rigorous and done according to government guidelines and regulations.
“Our decisions in a tender cannot be guided by emotions or campaigns, our decisions must be made on the tender documents and the rules and regulations around the tender process,” he said.
He said that everything council does strives to work for the betterment of the community.
“Everything must have a benefit to the community ... and it must not impose undue burdens on the community, especially financial.”