Public Procurement Service Awards Whistleblowers Reporting Unfair Procurement Practices

Provided by Public Procurement Service

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] The Public Procurement Service (PPS) will provide rewards to whistleblowers who report unfair procurement practices.

The PPS announced on the 29th that starting next year, if a report of unfair procurement practices such as origin violations is received, and based on the investigation results, if a fine is imposed, or a sanction against a dishonest supplier or recovery of unjust profits is decided, a reward will be given to the whistleblower.

Unfair procurement practices include ▲ origin violations specified in the Procurement Business Act ▲ delivery of products that differ from contract specifications ▲ forgery or alteration of documents related to bidding or contracts ▲ submission of false documents ▲ violation of direct production ▲ breach of the obligation to maintain preferential prices under multiple supplier contracts ▲ obtaining designation as excellent procurement goods through false or fraudulent means, among others.

If the investigation results in a decision to recover unjust profits from the relevant company, the PPS will pay a reward ranging from a minimum of 300,000 KRW to a maximum of 3,000,000 KRW based on a certain percentage of the recovery amount.

Additionally, if a fine is imposed or a sanction against a dishonest supplier is issued, a reward of 200,000 KRW will be paid.

The PPS has been investigating unfair procurement practices since 2017, and as of the end of last month, a total of 261 reports have been received and are under investigation.

Kim Jeong-woo, Administrator of the PPS, stated, “We will work to eradicate hidden unfair procurement practices through the payment of rewards for reports,” adding, “Based on this, the PPS will strictly crack down on unfair procurement practices in the public procurement market to eliminate unfair companies and foster an environment where diligent businesses can grow.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.