By Sri Lanka has rejected two Indian bidders and will call for fresh bids to select a service provider to print Unique Digital Identity Cards by the end of this year.
Two top state officials have said the government was under “external pressure” to select Madras Security Printers, a company now accused of malpractice in several other countries.
Madras Security Printers won the tender to print revenue stickers for bottles of alcohol early this year, but its credibility has been questioned after a massive scam with forged stickers.
India has already given an advance aid of 450 million Indian rupees to President Wickremesinghe’s government to fund the digital ID project, which aims to collect biographic and biometric information, including facial, iris, and fingerprint data, and this incident may cause some kind of fallout.
Allegations and denial:
Madras Security Printers (MSP) has been accused of malpractice in several other countries, including Kenya, Liberia, and Sudan.
In Kenya, MSP was contracted to print passports and identity cards in 2013. However, the company was accused of producing low-quality documents and overcharging the government. The Kenyan government eventually cancelled the contract, and MSP was blacklisted.
In Liberia, MSP was awarded a contract to print passports in 2016. However, the company was accused of producing defective passports that were not compatible with the passport scanners used at border crossings. The Liberian government eventually terminated the contract and MSP was blacklisted.
In Sudan, MSP was contracted to print identity cards in 2017. However, the company was accused of producing cards that were too easily forged. The Sudanese government eventually cancelled the contract and MSP was blacklisted.
In the Philippines, MSP was reportedly blacklisted for its interference with an e-ID project. However, the details of the allegations were not publicly disclosed.
Overall, MSP has a history of performance problems in several countries. These problems suggest that the company may not be a reliable partner for large-scale ID projects. The Sri Lankan government’s decision to disqualify MSP from the latest bidding process is a prudent one said an analyst.
Meanwhile, MSP has debunked claims of malpractice and low-quality service
