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Letter of the Chapter 23 Working Group Members

Letter of the representatives of Institute Alternative (IA), Centre for Civic Education (CGO) and Centre for Development of NGOs (CDNGO) addressed to the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration

Podgorica, 28.07.2014.

We address you in the capacity of the members of the Working Group for the Preparation of Negotiations on Chapter 23 with the intent to inform the public in more detail about the difficulties we, as representatives of the non-governmental sector, face while participating in the work of this body. The rationale behind our appeal is the fact that the Government of Montenegro adopted the Third Report on the Implementation of the Action Plan for Chapter 23, at the meeting held on July 10, 2014, whereas, we, the members of the Working Group, were not given insight into this document prior to its formal referral for adoption. We consider this action to be unacceptable and that it inevitably brings into question our status in the Working Group.

From the very beginning of functioning of the Working Group, we, representatives of the non-governmental sector, did not have an equal status with other members appointed by the state authorities. Still, during the last year, this inequality has started to seriously jeopardize the purpose of our membership in this body and to bring into question the possibility of our contribution to the functioning of the Working Group. From these very concrete problems and obstacles depended and still depends on our work in this body.

Let us remind that, according to our abilities and capacities, we gave a wholehearted contribution to the drafting process of the Action Plan for Chapter 23. Following the adoption of this document, the Working Group was tasked to regularly monitor the implementation of the Action Plan and to report on a quarterly basis on its implementation. We are not able to participate in the realization of this task due to the following reasons:

  1. NGO representatives are being denied access to the website where all members of the Working Group store information about the implementation of the Action Plan. The website is made available to every government representative in the Working Group
  2. So far, NGO representatives have only once had access to the segments of the Second Report on the Implementation of the Action Plan, and not its integral version. We have provided comments to the submitted segments, but none of the comments were included in the final version of the Report
  3. NGO representatives had no insight into the Third Report on the implementation of the Action Plan, prior to its adoption by the Government.

All of the above listed problems are easily solvable. However, despite presenting initiatives similar to this one at meetings of the Working Group, we have not received any feedback from the competent authorities. Therefore, we can rightly conclude that there is a clear reason for these problems not to be solved, as well as the intention to withhold information on the work of the state authorities in the implementation of the Action Plan from the non-governmental sector. Namely, we refer to the information on the implementation of reforms in the undoubtedly most sensitive areas, such as judicial reform, anti-corruption policy, and human rights.

Our continued participation in the work of the Working Group will depend on overcoming the aforementioned problems. Otherwise, we do not recognize the manner in which we could contribute to the work of the Working Group nor justify our participation in this body to the organizations we represent or to the general public.

Unfortunately, these actions render of any meaning a very brave and, in our opinion, mature and correct decision made by the Montenegrin Government to include the non-governmental sector in this process. When compared to the previous practices of the EU accession procedure, this decision represents a qualitative step forward. With the hope to continue with such progressive practice, we once again request the following:

  1. In order to be able to provide quality contribution to the process of report drafting, NGO representatives shall gain unrestricted access to the website where all members of the Working Group store information about the implementation of the Action Plan
  2. Quarterly and semi-annual reports on the implementation of the Action Plan shall be submitted at least 7 days prior to the meeting of the Working Group
  3. The Working Group shall hold meetings twice a month, in order to achieve better coordination of the process of briefing and informing the representatives of the NGO sector
  4. NGO representatives shall have access to the final version of the Report, after the concluding changes are made, and just before its submission for approval to the Government.

In addition, we will inform the Montenegrin public on our future engagement in the work of this Working Group in a timely manner, and after receiving feedback upon our requests.

Yours Faithfully,

Ana Novaković, Centre for Development of NGOs

Boris Marić, Centre for Civic Education

Jovana Marović, Institute Alternative

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The Impact of Political Corruption on the Municipal Decision-Making Process

Centre for Civic Education (CCE) organized a panel discussion today, entitled “The Impact of Political Corruption on the Municipal Decision-Making Process”. The event was part of the project “Corruption at the Local Level – Zero Tolerance”. Opening remarks and keynote speeches were delivered by Daliborka Uljarević, Executive Director of Centre for Civic Education (CCE), and Stevo Muk, President of the Managing Board of Institute Alternative (IA).

Stevo Muk emphasized that political corruption is not only limited to abuses related to the election process (voting for MPs and councilors) or the ones related to the appointment of other officials by the elected representatives (in the parliaments). In spite of being most recognizable in the aforementioned processes, positions that are in fact most susceptible to corruption are those implying broad range of authorities, such as positions of mayors and persons in charge of public companies and institutions, especially municipal agencies for construction and development. In addition, he pointed out to the lack of proactive prosecutions. Muk also spoke about the impact of political corruption in the areas of employment, public procurement and public-private partnerships. It is reflected in the surplus of employees in all municipalities as a result of misuse of the possibilities of limitless and irrational employment, followed by the violations of legal procedures in the public procurement and avoidance of the usage of transparent procedures, as well as the lack of clear regulations, professional capacities, transparency, competition, and risk sharing methodology. Everything listed above represents breeding ground for corruption in the area of public-private partnerships.

A more detailed report from the panel discussion is available at the website of Centre for Civic Education (in Montenegrin)

The panel brought together about 30 representatives of municipal governments covered by the project, competent state authorities, political parties, NGOs, the media, diplomatic core, etc.

Objective of the project “Corruption at the Local Level – Zero Tolerance” is to strengthen the role of civil society organizations, municipal governments and competent authorities in policy development, as well as to monitor and campaign for the decrease of corruption in Montenegrin local communities. More specifically, the project aims to strengthen the implementation of anti-corruption policies at the local level, as well as to raise citizens’ awareness on the importance of effective anti-corruption mechanisms and procedures in 14 Montenegrin municipalities: Podgorica, Cetinje, Nikšić, Danilovgrad, Herceg Novi, Kotor, Tivat, Budva, Bar, Rožaje, Pljevlja, Mojkovac, Kolašin, and Plužine. Within the framework of this project, consultative trainings and panel discussions were organized, followed by the implementation of local action plans and creation of policy studies on topics recognized as the most risky for the emergence and development of corruption at the local level.

The project “Corruption at the Local Level – Zero Tolerance” is implemented by Centre for Civic Education (CCE), in cooperation with Institute Alternative (IA), NGO Nada, and NGO Bonum. It is supported by the European Union through the EU Delegation to Montenegro and IPA 2011, and co-financed by the Royal Norwegian Embassy.

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Reaction to the press release of the Ministry of finance

The Ministry of Finance has reacted to our press relase “Forgotten Conclusion of the Parliament” from the 21 July, among other things, qualifying our claims as “malicious and inaccurate.” In the press release, we state that an important conclusion of the Parliament, on mid-year reporting on budget execution, has not been fulfilled although the deadline has passed.

Usage of the aforementioned qualifications by the Ministry is inappropriate and unsubstantiated. In its press release, the Ministry did not contest the facts we had presented. Everything we had written is true and this was confirmed by the Ministry itself: 1) The Conclusion of the Parliament was not complied with; 2) The Government is behind the schedule with submitting the report on the implementation of revenue; 3) The Law on Budget and Fiscal Responsibility does not stipulate the obligation of semi-annual reporting to the Parliament on the budget execution.

Let us remind that in our press release we had pointed out to the fact that reporting to the Parliament on the budget execution is not stipulated within the legal framework. Introducing such obligation was one of the proposals we advocated for during the public hearing on the Draft Law on Budget and Fiscal Responsibility, as well as during parliamentary debate on the Bill on Budget and Fiscal Responsibility. The Ministry of Finance, the Government, and the parliamentary majority did not support our proposal.

In addition to advocating for greater transparency of the budget process, Institute Alternative wishes to present to the public the manner in which the Government behaves towards the conclusions of the Parliament. In this particular case, we have provided evidence that an important Conclusion of the Parliament, adopted accompanying the 2014 Budget Law, was not complied with, even though the deadline has passed.

We will continue to monitor implementation of conclusions of the Parliament, especially those referring to the budget process, seeing that we consider them particularly important. Likewise, we wish to express our hope that the Ministry of Finance will make an effort towards not ignoring or forgetting about the parliamentary initiatives aiming at strengthening the transparency of the budget.

Finally, we express our hope that the communication of the Ministry of Finance with the public and non-governmental organizations will be based on arguments corroborated by facts, and that the response to our press release will be the last example of usage of offensive qualifications in public relations.

 

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Press release: Government Eluding Obligations from the Action Plan for Chapter 23

The Government is behind the schedule with implementation of the majority of measures from the Action Plan for Chapter 23 – Judiciary and Fundamental Rights related to public procurement.

The third reporting period on the implementation of measures from the Action Plan for Chapter 23 does not represent an exception when it comes to failing to adopt the amendments to the Law on Public Procurement, since the Bill was adopted by the Government on July 17. The deadline for fulfillment of this obligation was set for December 2013. The Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Public Procurement does not contain any core recommendations from the Action Plan for Chapter 23, like the one related to introducing adjustments to the manner of appointment of the president and the members of the State Commission for the Control of Public Procurement Procedures, nor the one entailing introduction of negative references for the bidders who have previously violated their contractual obligations.

There was no advancement in developing risk analysis methodology in performing control activities, which is aimed at enabling proactive action in prevention and early detection of corruption. The Working Group tasked with establishing the aforementioned methodology was formed on March 14, 2014, and so far held only one meeting.

The deadline for increasing the number of authorized officers from one to three, as well as increasing the number of inspection controls, was set for January 2014. However, in the Inspection for Public Procurements of the Administration for Inspection Affairs there is still only one inspector conducting supervision in this area. During 2013, public procurement inspectors have conducted only 84 inspection controls.

Jovana MAROVIĆ

Research Coordinator

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Press release: Forgotten Conclusion of the Parliament

The Government has not complied with the Conclusion of the Parliament and has not yet submitted the mid-year budget execution report. This is a blatant violation of the Parliament’s Conclusion which was unanimously adopted accompanying the 2014 Budget Law, upon the proposal of the Socialist People’s Party (SNP).

According to the adopted Conclusion, the report was expected to show whether the growth in revenue collection was achieved in so far as envisaged by the Plan of the Budget Law. If determined that it was, the Conclusion of the Parliament obliged the Government to propose measures for reallocating these funds with the aim of increasing expenditure for social welfare and protection of vulnerable classes of society.

The Government failed to fulfill this obligation and to this day has not submitted the requested report to the Parliament. The deadline for submission determined by the Parliament was June 30, 2014.

This way, MPs’ attempt to ensure being more adequately informed about the budget execution, and indirectly, exert greater degree of parliamentary control over the budget, was hindered.

Let us remind that Montenegrin Ministry of Finance is the only one in the region that does not submit semi-annual reports to the Parliament on the execution of the budget. The Bill on Budget and Fiscal Responsibility does not stipulate the obligation of the Ministry of Finance to prepare and submit to the Parliament a report on the budget execution during the course of the fiscal year for which the budget was adopted. From the moment the next year’s budget is adopted in December of the current year, the Parliament and the relevant Committee have no information about its execution until September of the following year, when the final account of the budget is submitted for review.

While participating in drafting the Law on Budget and Fiscal Responsibility, Institute Alternative has proposed to precisely define the obligation of semi-annual reporting to the Parliament on the budget execution. We have also proposed to introduce an obligation to the Ministry of Finance to submit a report on the current state of budget execution at the request of the Parliament, which can be made at any time.

None of these suggestions were accepted and today we find ourselves in the situation where the Parliamentary conclusions are neglected by the Government and the Ministry of Finance.

Institute Alternative, with the support of the Open Society Foundations – Think Tank Fund, implements the project “Analytical Monitoring of the Oversight Function of the Parliament” which aims to strengthen the impact of implementation of the parliamentary control mechanisms.

Marko Sošić
Public Policy Researcher

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For State Administration – Equal for All

After pinpointing the main challenges of introduction of the merit-based system in Montenegrin state administration, Institute Alternative will continue to monitor the implementation of the Law on Civil Servants and State Employees.

With the financial support of the U. S. Embassy in Podgorica, IA will implement the project “State Administration in Montenegro – Equal for All” over the next twelve months.

Within the project, we will continue to monitor filling of vacancies in state authorities. We will also launch an online interactive platform, with an aim of encouraging citizens to report problems and eventual infringements of their rights from the side of Montenegrin administration. Guide for job candidates in state authorities will also be designed.

With the start of the implementation of the new Law on Civil Servants and State Employees in January 2013, IA has recognised the significance of the consistent implementation of this act, which is expected to introduce expert qualifications and performance of candidates as the key crteria of their recruitment and promotion.

In the annual monitoring report, we have highlighted key problems which impede establishment of the merit-based system in Montenegrin state administration.

State authorities were not prepared for the implementation of the new act. Until January 1, 2014, data for only third of employees who fall under the scope of the Law were entered into the Central Human Resources Register.

Legal status of fixed-term employees in state authorities was also not properly resolved before the start of the application of the act. Their job security was thus severely endangered. Only in the Ministry of Interior, there were over 500 fixed-term employees in 2013, although the Law prescribes this kind of employment just in exceptional circumstances. More than third of these employees will lose their jobs, because they fail to meet eligibility criteria for positions they currently occupy.

At least two state administration authorities, Education Bureau and Agency for Environmental Protection, concluded employee transfer agreements with the agency for employment mediation. They have thus circumvented obligatory testing procedures and breached the Law.

Five people appealed against recruitment procedures in state administration authorities over the previous year. The three appeals were upheld. Decisions on upholding these appeals suggest the inconsistencies in ensuring funds for filling of vacancies and disrespect of eligibility criteria for a job position.

These findings suggest the need for continuous monitoring of the application of the new rules. More engagement from the side of the state authorities, especially of the Human Resources Management Authority, Administrative Inspection and of the State Audit Institution, is also required in order for the circumvention of the Law to be prevented.

Milena Milošević
Policy Analyst