>Maybe where you live that's what it's like, but that level of corruption is unheard of where I live

Genuinely, I'm curious where you live.

I don't know how you avoid such conflicts of interest entirely. And for what might seem like the most blatant of conflicts, it doesn't mean the bid winners weren't in full compliance. You might be surprised at how non-competitive these "competitive" procurements are.

People might be surprised, but nothing was necessarily fraudulent, dishonest, etc.