Mexico’s Organization of Internal Control (OIC) is investigating a bid for lottery services won by subsidiaries of GTECH after two rival bidders complained of irregularities in the submission and review process of GTECH’s bid.
Losing bidders Sorteo Games and Win Systems claim Mexico’s ronósticos para la Asistencia Pública (Pronósticos) lottery allowed additional commercial and technical documents to be submitted to its RFP committee by GTECH Systems and GTECH Mexico after each bidder’s sealed economic offer had already been opened and assessed.
The tender for lottery systems was divided into two segments, one for economic proposals and one for technical proposals. Sorteo won the economic portion; GTECH’s win for the technical portion is now under review.
Both losing bidders complained that the lottery accepting the additional documents was “highly irregular” and gave GTECH an unfair advantage.
“We are deeply disappointed that such irregularities are being allowed to interfere with this process—to the detriment of Mexican society,” Sorteo chief executive Nour-Dean Anakar told the newsletter Gaming Intelligence. “We hope that justice will prevail and that the best economic offer and truly superior solution will be adopted to facilitate the expansion of the lottery in Mexico.”
Sorteo also lodged a complaint against the results of the technical offer valuations, alleging the committee “improperly” failed to acknowledge technology made available by Sorteo through a pre-existing agreement with Intralot.
“Such an agreement is clearly validated under Article 3 of Section 6 of the Federal Public Law in Mexico, which regulates all acquisitions and all contracts to provide public works and services, the same federal law that regulates the current Pronósticos RFP,” the complaint said.
Sorteo had planned to supply Intralot point-of-sale terminals for the Pronósticos’ lottery and sports betting offering. Anakar told the newsletter that by adopting his company’s solution, Pronósticos would have been able to generate more funds for public welfare than the GTECH system.
The former contract held by GTECH, which has supplied the lottery since 1987, expires in September.
