(1) A procuring institution must take steps in accordance with prescribed procedures to identify—
(a) automatically excluded persons as envisage in section 13 and their immediate family members; and
(b) related persons as envisaged in subsection (3).
(2)(a) The steps envisaged in subsection (1) include the prescribed declaration of interest to be made by—
(i) all bidders, in the case of bids; and
(ii) all applicants, in the case of applications for registration on a database created by the Public Procurement Office in terms of section 5(1)(i).
(b) A failure to submit a declaration or submitting a false declaration renders a bid invalid.
(3) If a person related to an accounting officer or other official or a member of an accounting authority, a bid committee or the Tribunal involved in procurement in terms of this Act, has, or intends to acquire, a direct or indirect personal interest in a procurement matter, the accounting officer or other official or a member of an accounting authority, a bid committee or the Tribunal—
(a) must disclose such interest in writing, immediately after receiving the agenda of the meeting of a bid committee of the procuring institution regarding a procurement, or on notification of a matter being brought to the attention of the bid committee or at any time during the consideration of the bid when the official or other person becomes aware of the interest; and
(b) may not be present at or participate in the deliberations or decision-making process of the procuring institution in relation to the agenda item or the matter in question.
(4) A disclosure of interest made in terms of subsection (3) must be recorded in the minutes of the meeting at which it is made, or it relates to or any document seeking a decision.