(Adds IT Ministry's reaction)

The first and second phases of the adjudication process in an ICT education tender are tainted, the Labour Party’s spokesman for Education Evarist Bartolo said.

He was referring to a government statement yesterday denying his claims of irregularity in the tender. The government said that the tender had not yet been given and it was only the first two phases of the adjudication that had been concluded.

Mr Bartolo said this afternoon that the process should be halted and investigated because companies which should have already been disqualified were considered to have qualified even though they had breached contract conditions.

In its reaction, the IT ministry insisted that none of the companies had appealed any decision although they had the right to do so and Mr Bartolo's involvement at this point was curious and unethical.

It said that while Mr Bartolo was insisting that some companies should not have been considered because they did not have the necessary technical capabilities, the complete evaluation of tenders was in the third stage of the process, which had not yet been concluded.