Contracting, finance officers negotiate with African vendors for task force supporting presidential mission

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Kathy Ferrero
  • Joint Task Force Public Affairs
DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania --  Sometimes, it's all about relationships. Building positive relationships when negotiating for services can be difficult at times. Add different languages and customs to the mix, and the negotiating challenge can seem insurmountable. 

But that's the environment one contracting-finance team entered to provide services for the joint task force deployed here to support President George Bush's five-nation tour to Africa. Reggae music played languidly next door through the glassless windows Feb. 15 as a fan buzzed in the salesman's office in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. 

Tech. Sgt. Billy Morris, contracting officer here, sat across from the businessman and stared at aqua green portable toilets on a brochure. 

"How are the people separated from the waste?" Sergeant Morris asked. 

"You see the pedestal? It's on a chemical tank," the vendor said. 

"There's an enclosure between the two?" "Yes." 

The contracting officer continues to ask questions: Do you provide toilet paper? Would you have any problem getting to the flightline? How soon could I get them? It's an open field. If the wind knocked it over, would you come and clean it up? He decides to purchase the toilets, pulls out his laptop and starts typing a contract. 

This process is quickened to meet urgent needs during deployments, said the joint task force finance officer, Master Sgt. Jim Martinez. 

"There's less red tape because here we can use a process which basically allows a contracting officer to form a contract ... and we can actually make a payment from finance on one form," Sergeant Martinez said. In deployed conditions, the contracting and finance officers become each other's best friends, he said. 

The contracting officer has the authority to make purchase commitments while the finance officer controls the money. "I can't do anything without him, and he can't do anything without me," Sergeant Martinez said. Sergeant Morris finds the needed items for a good price, and Sergeant Martinez pays and keeps joint task force budget balanced. 

Their reciprocity works in many ways. While Sergeant Morris typed the contract, the finance officer engaged the Tanzanian vendor, talking about their children and describing a portable toilet design he saw in Amsterdam once. 

"How we interact with them, even for a short time; that'll make a lasting impression," Sergeant Martinez said. Relations are especially important during deployments for such teams since there often isn't an office or a contract involved. 

Earlier that day, Sergeants Martinez and Morris tracked down a truck to rent using cash. They drove up to a dirt parking lot surrounded by day laborers. When the car stopped, the windows were filled with faces and tapping fingers. Although their driver is a former boxer, the crowd was too large and curious for Sergeant Martinez's comfort. 

"Initially, we were a little intimidated because we had people rushing to the car," the finance officer said. "But when you got out and met them and spoke to them, as people not just a mass of bodies, you meet them on an individual basis. 

"We had that bond for that short amount of time, and I'll always remember that the Tanzanian people are good, friendly, peaceful people," Sergeant Martinez said. "You watch TV, and you make these assumptions based on the negativity on the news about other African countries, because they're so volatile. But when you come here to a peaceful nation like this, it really changes your perception." 

After Sergeant Morris finished arranging for the truck delivery with the vendor, he got on his cell phone and made plans to buy 40 bottles of sunscreen and contract airline food providers for boxed lunches. He hung up his cell phone and exhaled. 

"Poor Billy," Sergeant Martinez said. "No one calls back to thank him. He cries on his pillow at night." Seargent Morris laughed. 

By the end of the day, the two provided for their unit's most basic needs - better food for hungry workers; sanitary facilities for troops on the airfield; sunscreen for burned faces; and a means to move heavy belongings around. 

But they also achieved a more lasting accomplishment, Sergeant Martinez said. "The most important thing is that we're contributing to the Tanzanian economy, and that's part of the president's visit itself."