ANS tender of 26.6 million lei: firms with criminal records and political connections
Three consortiums with criminal histories and political connections are competing for the contract to digitalise Romanian sport. The ANS decision is expected by 15 October.
DNA files and foreign monopolies in the race for the "Romanian Sports Portal"
G4Media reports, based on an investigation conducted by journalists from Context, that a tender launched by the National Sports Agency (ANS) for the digitalisation of Romanian sport is attracting companies with criminal files, political connections and suspicions of cartels. The contract, valued at 26.6 million lei, aims at developing the "Romanian Sports Portal" platform.
The project raises questions already in the technical documentation phase. According to experts from the Association for Technology and Internet (ApTI), the terms of reference contain several irregularities: it does not provide for compatibility with the European Digital Identity Wallet, even though Romania is obliged to align with EU standards. The source code of the platform will remain closed, even though the project is financed from public and European funds — which prevents the free reuse of the solution by other state institutions. ApTI further warns that the required cybersecurity standards are vague, and the system could become vulnerable if servers are not constantly maintained and updated by qualified personnel.
By the deadline, three consortiums of companies submitted their bids.
The first consortium is led by Phoenix IT SRL, owned by a businessman previously detained by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA). The group includes companies with links to fugitive Sebastian Ghiță or associates of the former director of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SIE), Ioan Talpeș. The same consortium includes firms investigated by the Competition Council for suspicions of cartel on the archive services market.
The second consortium, led by Cyberllence Inovație SRL, includes Flexinform, a Hungarian company with a monopoly position in the digitalisation of sport in Viktor Orbán's Hungary. Alongside this operates Zenvertising, a firm that has received millions of lei from contracts with political parties, including PSD and USR.
The third consortium, headed by Unicore SRL, comprises firms whose owners have been referred to trial by the DNA in corruption cases involving bribery for obtaining contracts from European funds. The investigations concern the Mardarasevici family and the former mayor of Iași, Gheorghe Nichita. This group also includes companies under investigation by the Competition Council.
A common element in all three consortiums: the majority of companies involved have a consistent history of contracts with the state and have received substantial public funds over time.
ANS has until 15 October to evaluate the technical qualifications of participants and designate the winner who will implement the platform intended to centralise Romanian sports services.
Source: G4Media