Youth Affairs Committee of the Kachin State People’s Party (KSPP) has sent a letter to the Kachin State Chief Minister on January 15th that queries the handling of tenders for building contracts for construction projects to be developed by the Kachin State government in the 2020-21 fiscal year.

U Naw Khone, head of KSSP Youth said “we have called on the Kachin State government to give priority to the local companies to ensure more job opportunities for locals and better circulation of income in Kachin State.”

They also have demanded a check on the list of companies that won tenders during 2020-21 to see whether the departmental officials are themselves involved in the tender process, given that the number of local companies which won tenders was relatively low.

KSSP asserted “More priority is given to outside companies rather than local entrepreneurs. There will be a very few number of local companies in the major infrastructure development projects in Kachin State.” In the letter, the Kachin State government needs to recheck the involvement of a company director in more than one of the tender winning companies On January 8th, the list of companies which won the tender for 38 projects to be developed with the capital expenditures of the Kachin State in the 2020-2012 fiscal year. Local companies did not get priority.

The KSPP won four seats in the 2020 General Election—one for the upper house parliament and three for the Kachin State parliament.