How Council members received money: Katnić controls the fees from EKIP

The Special State Prosecutor's Office heard several current and former members of the Council of the Agency for Electronic Communications and Postal Activities (EKIP) in the investigation of the illegal distribution of benefits.

According to the reliable information of "Vijesti", in that investigation, Aleksandar Mijač, Branko Kovijanić and Ana Radonjić were heard yesterday, and statements were made last week by Council President Šaleta Đurović and member of that body Zoran Sekulić.

Đurović and Kovijanić told "Vijesta" yesterday that the investigation is classified as secret and that they cannot say why they were questioned.

Allegedly, before the prosecutors of Milivoj Katnić, they gave their statements as citizens.

A source from the investigation said that prosecutors have been checking for almost two years how and why the EKIPA Council members were paid fees of several hundred euros per month for years.

Allegedly, the investigators were suspicious as to why those financial transactions were made through another legal entity.

Mijač, Kovijanić, Đurović and Sekulić are still members of the Council, and Radonjić has not been in that working body of the Agency for several months.

In May 2011, the Prosecutor's Office launched checks on the operations of EKIP and ordered the Directorate for the Prevention of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism to control its financial transactions.

Less than two years ago, the police again, on the order of the prosecution, checked the operations of the regulator of the electronic communications market.

EKIP's operations have been attracting public attention for many years, especially its two major investments - the construction of the main control and measurement center on Dajbabska gora and the purchase of two business premises.

Instead of solving the problem of controlling the frequency spectrum by erecting a metal lattice pillar, as was done by larger and richer countries in the surrounding area and as suggested by domestic experts, which would cost around 300.000 euros, the investment of building a large tower was completely unnecessary. ended up amounting to over five and a half million euros.

Another controversial business of EKIP is the purchase of two business premises in 2007, which the University sold to two private companies SAMMS and "Šajo" for 1,6 million euros. Three months later, those two companies sold the same space to the Agency for more than four million.

During the conclusion of those business arrangements, the EKIP Council was headed by Ljubiša Stanković, who at the same time was the rector of the University of Cme Gore.

EKIP is the most profitable state regulator, whose annual budget is around 4,8 million euros.