After taking down IT official Simakov and getting the bogus Ministry of Health and Social Development tenders worth 110 million rubles canceled, I was absolutely flooded with links to similar fake tenders and demands for immediate “results.” Here’s what I want to say: Actually, this whole issue of IT tenders came up completely by accident; I hadn’t planned to get involved in it. But since I’ve already stepped in, I’m not going to back out. We can give it a try. On one condition: I’m not willing to be the only one “making things happen.” Let’s do it together. My colleagues and I can challenge all these dubious tenders. But there’s one problem. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) is responding reasonably and, judging by everything, is prepared to review our complaints fairly. But in the context of a fair review, the phrase “IT expert Alexei Navalny” can provoke nothing but Homeric laughter. I understand the legal side of the matter, but I’m a complete amateur when it comes to the technical substance. Below is a selection of the links you sent me. My staff picked out the ones that look like corruption and fraud even at first glance. We will try to get each of these tenders canceled, once we receive an expert opinion on each one. What does an “expert opinion” mean for this project? It’s a document that briefly and clearly explains why the tender is bogus. The document must be signed by someone with relevant education and who works in the appropriate field. Anonymity won’t work. The person must be prepared for their document to be attached to an official complaint. It can be written in any format. Something like: I, so-and-so, with such-and-such qualifications and education, working at such-and-such organization, having reviewed tender application such-and-such, can state the following. Date, signature, contact information. It would be excellent if the opinion comes from an organization or a group. Send it by email. In addition, the project will badly need informational support: sharing, comments, publicity. The government bodies reviewing the case need to understand that there is a “serious public outcry” here. I’m sure that in Simakov’s case, it was precisely the “public resonance” that worked. So those who do not have expert IT qualifications can help by making sure information about these scams is EVERYWHERE. I’ll keep you updated on the progress. Moscow State Institute of Electronic Technology (MIET) is procuring a hardware-software system for modernizing the Center for Nano- and Microsystems Technology. The starting price of the state contract is 139 million rubles. Deadline: 25 days. Here
Moscow State Institute of Electronic Technology (MIET) is procuring the development of technical solutions and the supply of a hardware-software system for the modification of, and diagnostics of the structure and composition of, micro- and nano-objects. The starting price of the state contract is 112.11 million rubles. Deadline: 25 days. Here
Moscow’s Information Technology Department is procuring the “Electronic Office of the Mayor of Moscow” system, which will monitor media reports and posts in blogs, forums, and social networks about the work of the city government and the mayor. Cost: about 23.3 million rubles. Here
Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation is procuring the development of an electronic educational environment: user registration, authorization, and account administration; content display; support for a continuous learning process; collection and provision of statistical information and reports; etc. Cost: 48 million rubles. Deadline: no more than 20 days (the state contract must be signed within 15 days from the date the protocol evaluating and comparing конкурс applications is posted on the official website. The commission meeting for evaluating and comparing applications is scheduled for November 19. The work is to be carried out from the moment the state contract is signed until the submission of final reporting documentation—December 10, 2010). Here
Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation is procuring a system for training highly qualified personnel in supercomputing technologies and specialized software: creating a network of research and educational centers for supercomputing technologies—intended to concentrate academic and educational capacity at universities that have the resources and substantial experience in developing supercomputing technologies; developing teaching and methodological support for the system of training, retraining, and advanced professional development in supercomputing technologies—intended to create a scientific and methodological foundation based on new-generation educational standards for training specialists in this field; implementing educational programs for training, retraining, and advanced professional development in supercomputing technologies—intended to create the academic and teaching capacity needed to ensure high-quality specialist training in supercomputing, etc. Cost: 60 million rubles. Deadline: no more than 1 month (from the signing of the contract, approximately November 15, until submission of final reporting documentation on December 15, 2010). Here
Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation is procuring work on the project “Development of the electronic educational resource ‘Student Performance Journal’”: providing general education institutions in Russia with a resource meeting the requirements of the new-generation federal state educational standards for basic general and complete secondary education. Cost: 12 million rubles. Deadline: no more than 20 days. Here
Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation is procuring work to modernize the hardware-software monitoring system for the priority national project “Health,” including information and analytical support in 2010. Cost: 45 million rubles. Deadline: no more than 40 days. Here
Federal Service for State Registration, Cadastre and Cartography (Rosreestr) is procuring work to support the implementation of the automated “Real Estate Market Monitoring” system (Stage III): automating Rosreestr’s operations, standardizing the data stored in Rosreestr databases, ensuring prompt retrieval and processing of that data for state cadastral valuation and the use of its results, etc. Cost: 55.8 million rubles. Deadline: no less than 30 and no more than 38 days. Here
Ministry of Economic Development has commissioned the creation of a distributed automated information system to support small and medium-sized businesses: development of the federal component of the system on the basis of the Automated Information System “Federal Portal for Support of Small and Medium-Sized Entrepreneurship” by creating additional services and expanding the system’s subsystems, website structure, and content; development of a package of regulatory, organizational, and administrative acts and methodological materials needed to launch the federal component into full operation; provision of technical support and operational maintenance for the federal component, etc. Cost: 27 million rubles. Time frame: from 15 to 25 days from contract signing, in two stages. Here
That’s the most obvious stuff. There’s also a whole lot more that’s less obvious to varying degrees. I’ll post that separately.
Honestly, I have to say, I didn’t expect such outright lawlessness in this field. I thought it was a highly competitive area, with loud, combative people working in it, so you couldn’t just slip something through by treating everyone like idiots.
But this is absolute hell. How can we expect the domestic IT industry to develop if even government procurement is closed off? Everything has already been carved up.
So get involved, you brilliant egghead nerds with glasses. There’s no way to do this without you.
You need to attach a nice sharp nail to our poking stick.
Oh boy... I’m really going to make some enemies now... This is somebody’s income, after all