Smart Tender, a platform developed by the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) to lower bid-rigging risks in building maintenance, is unable to effectively halt collusion among bidders, URA representatives told a judge-led independent committee probing the deadly Tai Po fire.

The independent inquiry into November’s fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po began its 21st hearing on Thursday with three witnesses from the URA — director of building rehabilitation, Peter Wong Se-king; case manager Matthew Chan Yat-ho; and assistant manager Brian Yam Lap-yin. Their presence marks the authority’s first testimony in the inquiry.

Chan testified that the URA posted advertisements for the renovation work on the government-run platform Smart Tender for interested parties to submit bids, while the opening results of tenders received were handled by the owners' corporation itself. After the tender opening, the URA compiled a list of bidding prices from various companies for the corporation, and also appointed RS Surveyors Limited for an independent assessment.

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However, he noted that the "Smart Tender" at the time only covered renovation contractors but not registered inspectors — a role later taken up by Will Power Architects Company in Wang Fuk Court’s case. Furthermore, RS Surveyors, hired by URA, did not assess selection of registered inspectors as well, Chan explained, because the consultant fees vary greatly between different companies. This meant that the building owners then had to hire registered inspector themselves.

Victor Dawes, lead counsel for the independent committee, noted that Will Power Architects had quoted HK$248,000 ($31,650) for building inspection services over a six month period for eight blocks, which meant a daily cost of about HK$200 per block.

Dawes asked Chan whether he found the figure unreasonably low. Chan admitted that he did, but said he didn’t dwell on whether any wrongdoing was involved, nor did he discuss it with the owners' corporation, so as "not to influence their choice”.

Wong said that residents prioritize price, and the Smart Tender cannot effectively handle potential collusion among inspectors, contractors and owners' corporations.

Dawes said residents might have the misconception that tendering through the Smart Tender platform is absolutely reliable. Wong said he cannot deny the statement, but stressing that if owners do not pay attention to the tendering process, it will be very difficult to eliminate the risk of bid-rigging.

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Wong said that URA will delist individuals or contractors prosecuted by the Independent Commission Against Corruption or the Competition Commission from the Smart Tender. However, the platform does not have proactive background checks, nor were contractors asked to disclose their relationships with other contractors.

Wong also said that the government had never tasked the URA with tackling bid-rigging, as its role was merely to "reduce the risk". URA lacks the resources and capacity for bid-rigging detection, Wong said.

The committee also presented a complaint from a Wang Fuk Court owner to Yam, which questioned whether the standards in Will Power Architects’ contractor analysis report was tailored for the Prestige Construction and Engineering Ltd, suggesting possible collusion. Yam's written reply to the complaint said the URA, bound by the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance, will not influence contractor selection. He also advised the owner to approach Will Power Architects directly.

Yam on Thursday explained that Will Power Architects had a professional duty to explain, while the URA “had no other channel” to handle the matter at the time.

Contact the writer at amberwu@chinadailyhk.com