The Ministry of Interior (MOI) opened a tender for the supply of chocolate for a sum of about 77,000 euros.
The advertisement can be seen on an electronic public procurement which was published on October the 6th, and interested companies can submit their bids by October the 26th.
As stated in the notification, the subject of public procurement is “specific chocolates” and the estimated value of the procurement without VAT is 4.743 million denars or approximately 77, 122 euros.
We made an inquiry to the Ministry as to why the Ministry of Interior acquires all that chocolate and for what need, however they declined a comment or to give a statement.
The average price of a 100 gram chocolate bar , purchased in wholesale, is about 40 denars, which means, when calculated, the Ministry of Interior procures more than 100,000 chocolates.
Conditions in the advertisement, among other things, the Ministry of Interior requires a list of references of the companies completed deliveries in the last three years, for goods of the same or similar type and at least one certificate of quality performance from customers.
They also require proof that the company has a vehicle for transport of merchandise and has staff of at least two people per delivery.
The contract for delivery for the chocolate lasts for one year or 12 months, says the advertisement.
Chocolates were mentioned by the Minister of Finance Zoran Stavreski in a figurative sense in one of the ‘Bombs’ (the wire tapped conversations) between Minister of Finance Zoran Stavreski, and the Former Minister of Interior, Gordana Jankulovska, published by the opposition SDSM.
Ms Jankulovska and Mr Stavreski were discussing holes in the budget and unproductive spending of public money.
The Minister of Finance at one point tells his colleague from the Ministry of Interior, “Gordona, even America would not go though this. Ways around this, ways around that, water parks, I do not know we are doing. We are insane. What we are doing is not normal. We should understand that it is not normal. We spend money on chocolate, when we have no bread at home. That’s what we do”.
