Audit on the Legality of Actions Undertaken by the Competent Authorities of a Region of the country Regarding Public Procurement Procedures in 2024

Audit on the Legality of Actions Undertaken by the Competent Authorities of a Region of the country Regarding Public Procurement Procedures in 2024, Road Construction Works in Mountainous Areas, the Dismantling and Transport of Former Olympic Facilities, and a Livestock Installation Linked to a Relative of the Regional Governor

The National Transparency Authority (NTA) conducted two audits concerning:

a) The legality of the actions taken by the competent authorities of a Region awarding a significant number of public contracts through direct award in 2024.

b) The execution of road construction works in a mountainous area, the dismantling and transport of former Olympic facilities for reuse, as well as business activities associated with a relative of the Regional Governor.

During the audit on the legality of public procurement procedures, the following key findings were noted:

Please note that the provisions of Law 4412/2016 have been violated.

The audited second-level Local Government Authority in 2024 engaged in the fragmentation and direct awarding of contracts for tree and shrub cutting/pruning services amounting to over two (2) million euros (excluding VAT), and road maintenance services totaling approximately five (5) million euros (excluding VAT).

As a result, the second-level Local Government Authority did not submit the relevant draft contracts to the Court of Audit for the mandatory legality check prior to contract conclusion, taking into account the total net value of the aforementioned service contracts awarded through the direct award process

Furthermore, it was found that in two technical works contracts awarded through a negotiated procedure without prior publication, the final contractors had been predetermined before the negotiation process officially took place.

During the audit concerning road construction in a mountainous area, the dismantling and transport of former Olympic facilities for reuse, and the business activities of a relative of the Regional Governor, the following issues were identified:

• The Regional Governor, operating outside the scope of his territorial jurisdiction and without notifying the authorities of the neighbouring Region, , through relevant requests and other correspondence during the period August 2023 - September 2024 mobilised military units. Consequently, military services conducted road-opening operations along a mountain ridge extending beyond the administrative boundaries of his jurisdiction.
• In the same area, an additional road was opened by a private contractor without obtaining the required environmental permits, as stipulated by Law 4014/2011 (Government Gazette A' 209).
• The Regional Development Fund (RDF) of the audited Region entered into contracts totalling approximately €2.5 million with a private construction company for the systematic dismantling of specific former Olympic installations located in Attica. These were subsequently transported and reinstalled for operational use at the Region's headquarters.
• The RDF then proceeded to sign two separate contracts with a subcontractor of the aforementioned private company. The contracts were for an additional ~€50,000, to acquire materials from the same installations. It should be noted that these materials should have already been delivered under the initial contracts.
• The audited Region has concluded service contracts with the relevant contractors for the loading, transportation and unloading of these materials. In most cases, these services had already begun before any expenditure approval or formal contract signing, contrary to the requirements of Laws 4270/2014 (Government Gazette A' 143) and 4412/2016 (Government Gazette A' 147).
• The competent animal husbandry committee of the Region initially issued a report for a livestock installation belonging to a relative of the Regional Governor, omitting to record an existing structure. Consequently, the installation did not comply with the legal requirements stipulated in Law 4056/2012 (Government Gazette A' 52). Following this, the same committee issued a revised report in compliance with the relevant legal provisions.

The relevant audit reports were then sent to the relevant disciplinary supervisors to initiate disciplinary proceedings against elected officials and civil servants of the audited Region, as well as a member of the RDF's Board of Directors. These proceedings were related to a total of 14 disciplinary offences.

Furthermore, the reports were submitted to the competent supervisory authorities and to the Athens Court of Appeals Prosecutor's Office for criminal evaluation of the findings.