The World Bank Monday announced the debarment of a consulting company and its president for using secret inside information to win a bid, and failing to disclose a conflict of interest on another bid.
Innogy Solutions Inc. and its president, Lloly Yana de Jesus, were debarred for five and a half years.
They used “collusive and fraudulent practices” during the selection process for contracts under a World Bank-funded project in the Philippines, the bank said.
During the debarment, the Manila-based firm and de Jesus are ineligible to participate in World Bank-financed projects.
The case was settled through a Negotiated Resolution Agreement.
Innogy and de Jesus acknowledged responsibility for the “underlying sanctionable practices.”
The project was the Integrated Persistent Organic Pollutants Management Project. It was supposed to help the Philippines government reduce the risk of human and environmental exposure to persistent organic pollutants — certain pesticides and industrial chemicals and their byproducts.
The bank said de Jesus obtained confidential information about the consulting services contract during the selection process. The confidential information wasn’t available to other bidders.
Innogy and another consulting firm it partnered with used the confidential information to win the contract.
“Under World Bank consultant guidelines, these actions constitute collusive practices,” the World Bank said.
The bank also said Innogy and de Jesus concealed information about her conflict of interest during another contract selection process. That was a “fraudulent practice” under World Bank rules.
The five-and-a-half-year debarments qualify for cross-debarment by the Asian Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the African Development Bank.
A list of all World Bank debarred entities and individuals is here.
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Richard L. Cassin is the publisher and editor of the FCPA Blog.
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