The private group of concerned citizens sought to have the city's long

Question

The private group of concerned citizens sought to have the city's long-term waste-removal contract voided  so as to open the process  to competitive bidding.

(A)so as to open the process
(B)and so the process could be opened
(C)to open the process
(D)so that the city could open the process
(E)in order that they could open the process

S2GGMAT · Accepted Answer

In Option C, It implies that the action "open" is done by the private group ,but actually it is done by The City. So option C is wrong.

Divyadisha · Answer

Meaning of the sentence is that a group of citizens are voiding long-term waste-removal contract so that the contract can be open for competitive bidding.

(A)so as to open the process  'so as' is not the right idiom 
(B)and so the process could be opened  'and' indicates some parallal elements, which are not there in the sentence 
(C)to open the process.  I really had hard time knocking this off. But, it has lot of 'to' in it.  
(D)so that the city could open the process.  Clear meaning 
(E)in order that they could open the process  'in order that' is not right idiom

I might have knocked choice 'C' for wrong reasons. Can anyone please advise?

sunnyofnits · Answer

'So as to' is not unidiomatic. Here the meaning that 'so as to' provides is inappropriate. It means the private group of concerned citizen would open the process to competitive bidding. But actually it is the city that would do so.. So clearly D is the required answer

Abhishek009 · Answer

So that = Answers the question why ....

The private group of concerned citizens sought to have the city's   long-term waste-removal contract voided   so that   the city could open the process to competitive bidding.

Q. Why was the long-term waste-removal contract voided ? 
 A . To open the process to competitive bidding.

srinjoy1990 · Answer

Hi Abhishek,

Can you please explain why option A is incorrect ?
The use of "so as to" doesn't seem to be an issue to me. Contrary to the posts above, I believe that "so as to" is a valid idiom.

Tx, Srinjoy.

Prateek176 · Answer

srinjoy1990

A is wrong because private group of citizens won't open the process to competitive bidding, the city will. Slight change in meaning

berdibekov · Answer

Still not clear to me. It is the private group that is interested in opening the contract. By their action they would open the competition process , but not the city, wouldn't they?

Abhishek009 · Answer

srinjoy1990 & berdibekov Please visit this link, it might help you.... https://gmatclub.com/forum/so-that-usage-252742.html

surendrasaini1 · Answer

The private group of concerned citizens sought to have the city's long-term waste-removal contract voided so as to open the process to competitive bidding.

Choice D is correct
 
(A) so as  to open the process  ( so as is unidiomatic rather so x as y is correct) 
(B) and  so the process could be opened
(C)to open the process ( suggest that group of citizens are going to open the process rather than the city)  
(D) so that the city could open the process (clear in meaning,correct use of so that)
(E)in order that  they  could open the process

berdibekov · Answer

Thank you for your reply! I do not question the usage of "so that" etc. I just cannot get my head around why it is the city that could start negotiations, but not the citizens? Citizens are people, who have ability to take the action, but the city itself, not its council or mayor, cannot take any action, can't it? 
Could you please point me to a discussion or link where i could find out about proper choosing the proper subject in such cases? Thank you!

shivanshu26shiv · Answer

Please let me know how a 'CITY' can open something. That's why I went for option 'C' rather 'D'.

Doer01 · Answer

Hi  Abhishek009  ,

How could city, a non-living thing, be the doer of an action?
I would have chosen D over C if D had "the council" instead of "the city".

TestPrepUnlimited · Answer

The correct answer is C.

A. Incorrect idiom. Needs to be simply "so  " or "to" 
B. Incorrect idiom "and so"; it should be simply "so." 
D. Incorrect idiom "so that." 
E. Change of meaning; "they" indicates the concerned citizens would open the process. Incorrect idiom "in order that" versus "in order to."

gmatyodha · Answer

so as to is idiomatic, here in option A this usage creates an ambiguity in the meaning, option D shows the intended meaning, In A it would mean that the private group private group open the process instead of city

chrisbender · Answer

This may be semantics, but shouldn't it be would instead of could? If another group is initiating the process, it implies that the city doesn't want to do so. If the city itself did it so that they could open up the process it would be entirely different.

arya251294 · Answer

Hope it helps, please highlight if there are any gaps in my understanding

The private group of concerned citizens sought to have the city's long

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The private group of concerned citizens sought to have the city's long

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