ANHAM FZCO, LLC Interview on Prime Vendor Contract

July 26, 2010

ANHAM Spokeswoman Grants Live Interview to Al Arabiya on Dismissal of Protest

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Trish Wexler, spokeswoman for ANHAM FZCO, LLC, provided a live interview to Al Arabiya on the recent news that the U.S. Government Accountability Office has dismissed all protests to the selection of ANHAM as “Prime Vendor” to the U.S. Government, providing food and support services for the U.S. Government in Kuwait and Iraq. The following is a summary of the questions and responses, with further detail provided below than time allowed for on air:

Q. You issued a press release last Friday announcing that the U.S. Government Accountability Office dismissed the protest filed by losing bidders for the Prime Vendor contract. What was the basis for this announcement?

A. ANHAM’s press release announced that the U.S. Government Accountability Office had “dismissed” protests filed by the losing bidders, and that ANHAM will continue to provide full-line food and non-food distribution and support services in Kuwait and Iraq. U.S. law allows for unsuccessful bidders to protest and challenge the documentation. This is a common – and in fact expected – course of action on the part of the losing bidder, particularly for larger contracts such as this. One of three things can then occur – the protest can be sustained (upheld), denied, or dismissed. In this case, the protest has been dismissed and is no longer under consideration by the U.S. Government. ANHAM has been, and will continue to perform against this contract in the future.

Q. But yesterday, KGL announced that the U.S. Defense Logistics Agency [the agency in charge of this contract for the U.S. Government] has decided to take corrective action with respect to the protest, and that it is in the process of reopening limited negotiations on limited subjects and will receive revised proposals. How can you reconcile this with your press announcement from last week?

A. The U.S. Government holds itself to particularly high standards with respect to documenting the justification for contract awards. Particularly in the case of large contracts such as this, agencies within the U.S. Government will often voluntarily decide to address any perceived lack of clarity in their decisions. This is apparently what is happening right now – and it is entirely expected.

The dismissal of the losing bidder’s protest is a matter of public record. It can be found by visiting the U.S. GAO’s Bid Protest Docket ( http://www.gao.gov/decision/docket, and search for KGL as protestor ). The details of the decision are as follows:

KGL Food Services W.L.L. (SPM300-08-R-0061)
Department of Defense: Defense Logistics Agency

Quick View Outcome: Dismissed Date Decided: July 22, 2010

Filed Date: April 27, 2010
Due: August 5, 2010
Case Type: Bid Protest
GAO Attorney: David A. Ashen
File Number: 400660.5

 

Q. Tell me more about your history of performing on similar contracts.

A. ANHAM is a Dubai-based privately held contracting firm, operating throughout the Middle East, Africa, South Central Asia and Europe. Our primary areas of endeavor are supply chain management and logistics, information and communications technology, operations and facilities management, and training. ANHAM has received the highest evaluations and recommendations from both private and public institutions that cite the company’s ability to execute contracts consistently on time and within budget. This reputation has been earned in some of the most demanding environments, where the company has also provided for the security of goods, services, and personnel in order to complete contracts with a documented record of success.