Was Konjević chosen as the director of EKIP by her godmother?

With the election of a new executive director of the Agency for Electronic Communications and Postal Services (EKIP) Marije Konjević the Law on the Prevention of Corruption was violated, because a member of the EKIP Council participated in her appointment Jelena Savić, who is also her godmother - which is why there is a suspicion that there was a conflict of interest.

This is stated in a letter sent by the executive director of EKIP in mid-December Darko Grgurović, sent to the acting director of the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (ASK) Dušan Drakić. In addition to this document, "Vijesti" also had access to extensive paperwork on the selection process of Konjević, in which her qualifications for this job were disputed several times.

The Council of EKIP appointed Konjević as director on November 23 with three out of five votes, including Savić.

The mandate of the executive director of EKIP lasts four years, and Konjević will take office on January 23, 2025. In addition to her, the shortlist at the competition included Srdjan Mihaljević, Vladan Đuranović and Elvis Babačić.

The Council session at the end of November was attended by its president Milan Radulović, members Jelena Savić, Amer Nokić and Dejan Jovanović, with the director of EKIP Grgurović and the secretary Milena Ivanovic. Member of the Council Nikola Labovic voted electronically because he could not attend.

Konjević received support from Nokić, Labović and Savić, while Radulović voted for Babačić and Jovanović for Đukanović.

Sporna in diploma

"In the process of appointing Konjević as executive director, EKIP Council member Jelena Savić participated, who, according to my knowledge, is in a godfather relationship with the newly elected director, so according to Article 8, paragraph 2 of the Law on Prevention of Corruption, Konjević is a related person to public official Savić. Since Savić did not recuse herself from making a decision in the process of electing the executive director of EKIP, but instead voted for Konjević, I believe that there is a justified suspicion that the provisions of the Law on "I am submitting the initiative so that the KAS will check these allegations ex officio and determine whether the public official Savić violated the provisions of the Law related to the prevention of conflicts of interest," the document that "Vijesti" had access to.

On the same basis, Grgurović filed a lawsuit in the Basic Court in Podgorica against the EKIP Council in mid-December. He stated in the lawsuit that the election of Konjević is contested under Article 14 of the Law on Administrative Procedure, that is, that an administrative act or activity can be challenged due to a violation of procedural rules, an incorrectly or incompletely determined state, or incorrect application of substantive law.

"Konjević graduated from the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (PMF) Computer Science and does not meet the special requirement of the competition regarding the higher education qualification of 240 credits (CSPK), specifically she has not completed a four-year study program in the fields of electrical engineering, postal traffic, economics or law, so even on that basis, the appointment is not legal", it is written in the lawsuit, which "Vijesti" had access to.

Grgurović therefore requested that the Council's decision not be recognized until the court makes a decision in this case.

Candidates had to fulfill several conditions during the competition, among them a higher education qualification of 240 credits, i.e. completed four-year studies in electrical engineering, postal transport, economics or law. In addition, at least five years of experience in electronic communications or postal activities were required.

The fact that Konjević has a diploma from PMF, i.e. that he is a computer science specialist, was also a topic at the session of the EKIP Council on November 21. That session was also attended by members of the Commission that conducted the competition, i.e. its president Ranka Drecun, members Dragana Šćepanović, Predrag Perutić and Miodrag Radonjić, including Danijela Nedeljković-Vukčević who joined by phone.

The council adopted the report on the work of the commission for the selection of the director of EKIP by a majority of votes, i.e. four to one.

The President of the Council, Radulović, took exception to the opinion and said that he is against accepting the report, because it is contradictory and incomplete. He said that it is clear that Konjević did not attach her diploma of basic studies, and that the letter from the University of Montenegro about this diploma - does not provide unambiguous information regarding the fulfillment of the conditions of the competition. Council members Jovanović and Nokić had the same dilemma, but they resolved it after talking with members of the Commission.

In the opinion of the University, it is stated that a student who has completed computer science, in terms of skills and knowledge in this field, can fully perform all tasks, as well as a student who has completed a study program in electronics, telecommunications and computers.

"News" on this topic are waiting for answers from EKIP.