A tenders committee disqualified a sole bid in a tender for the provision of cleaning services due to the bidder's negative past record.
The Court dismissed the petition and held that the tenders committee's decision to reject the bid based on the negative record was free of flaw. Intervention in the professional discretion of the tenders committee shall occur only in exceptional circumstances, provided that the decision does not extremely exceed the range of reasonableness. The tender was for an essential and ongoing service of cleaning in educational institutions and public buildings, where previous experience and quality of service constituted an inherent and essential part of the bid. The tender rules further stipulated that the tenders committee shall be entitled to disqualify a bid if the bidder is found to have a poor past record. The bidder's bid was disqualified following a hearing and in-depth discussion on the matter due to the existence of numerous complaints regarding the standard of cleaning and continuous non-compliance with the required performance standards. Consequently, it is a reasonable decision lying at the very heart of the tenders committee's professional discretion and there is no place for intervention.