The INPO organization has monitored the tendering procedure for the contract "Food services (supply, preparation and serving) for the needs of the Kosovo Police", with an estimated value of 2.7 million euros, and has identified a series of serious legal violations and technical maneuvers that harm competition, equality and integrity of public procurement.
This is stated in the INPO press release.
Throughout the process, INPO says it has maintained direct communication with the Kosovo Police, informing them with concrete evidence and arguments about the violations in the tender dossier.
"The Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Procurement Regulatory Commission were also copied on this communication. Despite this professional and institutional communication, the Kosovo Police has denied all findings, has not acknowledged any problems and has not expressed any willingness to correct or review the procedure.
"This approach constitutes an open refusal to address errors and guarantee a fair, transparent and legal process," the response states.
INPO further announces that during the monitoring, an economic operator filed a complaint with the PRB regarding two issues, the tender deadline and the technical and financial capacity criteria.
"INPO, in respect of the independence of the PRB, has decided not to publish its findings until the case has been reviewed, so as not to influence decision-making or create public expectations."
However, the decision No. 2025-0984 of the PRB confirmed that the Kosovo Police acted contrary to the law, by canceling the contract notice and requesting the Kosovo Police to correct the procedure and extend the tender deadline. This decision confirms that at least part of the INPO's findings were fully grounded and fair, which the Kosovo Police had completely denied," the reaction states.
INPO further emphasizes that despite this, following the PRB's decision, the Kosovo Police has made only some minimal and formal corrections, in which case it has reduced the requirements for technical and financial capacity and extended the tender deadline, but none of the other findings raised by INPO have been addressed.
According to INPO, the tender dossier remains unchanged in the most problematic and essential parts, including:
- misclassification of the contract as “services”, even though over 70% of the facility is food supplies;
- weighting of points that creates real opportunities for price manipulation and technical favoritism;
- artificial shifting of items between groups, which changes weight and financial values;
- wide ranges in technical specifications that allow for low-quality products;
- Dramatic reduction of the contract value without clear and professional justification.
These elements make the tender vulnerable, uncertain and unoriented towards quality, exposing the Kosovo Police to the risk of poor supplies and the state budget to inflated costs.
“Given that the PRB has already established legal violations, the Kosovo Police's refusal to accept or address the INPO's findings is unjustifiable and violates standards of institutional accountability.
"Therefore, INPO assesses that the current tender is not in compliance with the Public Procurement Law and requires a full review of the dossier, not just superficial corrections of some criteria," it further states.
According to the organization, only a thorough, professional and impartial review can guarantee fair competition, prevention of manipulation and correct use of public money.
"In this regard, INPO calls on supervisory institutions, such as the Public Procurement Regulatory Commission (PPRC) and the State Prosecutor, to exercise their legal mandate and carefully supervise this process, taking the necessary measures based on their authorizations.
The violations identified are not just administrative issues, but they affect the essence of the integrity of public procurement, guaranteeing competition, the use of public money and food safety for one of the most important institutions in the country."
INPO expects that supervisory and law enforcement bodies will not remain indifferent and act in accordance with their responsibilities. /Telegraph/
