Lawyer Yulibelys Wandelpool warns of the amendment in the new Public Procurement and Contracting Law 47-25 that allows uncles and nephews and nieces of key government officials to compete for government contracts.
In her opinion piece in Diario Libre, she writes that the new law is a step forward in the modernizing of the state’s procurement system with the introduction of new tools for traceability, annual planning, and sustainability criteria. Yet she warns that “ a closer review of its provisions reveals a regulatory change that could weaken ethical safeguards in the contracting process: the removal of third-degree blood relatives, such as uncles and nephews, from the list of disqualified individuals.”
This change marks a departure from the now-repealed Law No. 340-06, which did prohibit contracting up to the third degree of kinship. The legal and ethical implications of this modification deserve careful attention, especially in light of Article 38 of the new law.
She explains that under the new definition, the country’s procurement law no longer prohibits a nephew of a department director, procurement officer, or purchasing committee member from being awarded a contract in that same institution. This scenario, previously blocked by Law 340-06, is now legally permissible under the new framework.
She says that while the new law strengthens certain technical aspects of public procurement, it relaxes ethical safeguards by allowing contracts with close family members who are now excluded from disqualification. In a public administration system where family and political ties often overlap, this presents a real risk to transparency, impartiality, and public trust, she writes.
She makes the point that public contracting should not be evaluated solely on legal formalities. It also requires structural integrity and freedom from favoritism. The previous inclusion of third-degree kinship served as a buffer against more subtle —but still harmful— conflicts of interest.
“Excluding uncles and nephews from the disqualification list creates a legal loophole that weakens the anti-corruption framework. This gap calls for renewed legislative and technical debate to restore stricter boundaries aligned with principles of objectivity, fairness, and proper use of public funds. In public procurement, trust is earned not just through technology, but through clear and firm regulations,” she concludes.
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Diario Libre
Diario Libre
4 August 2025