Managers and union JMPD gave support to Mikijelj

The management of the Maritime and Coastal Transport Sector of JP Morsko Dobro and the newly formed "Union of Employees of JPMD - Ferries of Montenegro" expressed their support for the previous director of JP Morsko Dobro, Mladen Mikijelj, and called on the Government to resolve the issue of the director of that state-owned company, who is the only one authorized to sign business documents, as soon as possible.

The management and the union, which brings together 114 ferry line workers, state that the Maritime and Coastal Transport Sector of JPMD is currently in the midst of preparations for the upcoming tourist season, that numerous activities are being carried out to prepare and equip their ships, and that preparations are underway to announce a tender for regular repairs of the ferries "Grbalj", "Teodo" and "Perast", whose seaworthiness certificates will expire in a few months.

In order to renew their certificates, the three ferries must undergo regular dry docks, repairs, and hull inspections, so contacts are underway with domestic and foreign shipyards that have expressed interest in bidding on the upcoming tender for ship repairs.

All tender documentation has been prepared, lists of necessary works have been made based on the requests of the Technical Inspectorate of the Maritime Safety and Port Management Administration, but the further procedure and timely completion of the overhaul, which are a key part of the preparations of the Maritime and Coastal Transport Sector for the season, have been called into question because JPMD currently does not have a director who is the only one authorized to sign business documentation on behalf of that company.

"We would like to warn the Montenegrin public, the relevant ministry and the Government of Montenegro that in this very important period for the functioning of the Kamenari-Lepetane ferry line, and therefore the summer tourist season, we are currently working with the undefined status of the current director (Mladen Mikijelj - ed.). He, as the responsible person, is obliged to sign the documentation related to the tender for ship repairs. If this does not happen in the next few days, due to the legal procedure that is prescribed and which takes a certain period of time, we will not be able to repair the ships in a timely manner. Namely, shipyards in the country and the surrounding area have quite full schedules and will not wait for us if the procedure is prolonged. This means that we will enter the tourist season without three ships, two of which are large capacity," stated the management and the union of employees of the Morski Dobr ferry line.

At its session last week, the Government of Montenegro did not include on the agenda the proposal of the Minister of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and State Property Slaven Radunović (Nova) to entrust the current director of JPMD, Mladen Mikijelj (Nova), whose four-year mandate has expired, with another appointment as head of Morski Dobr.

Prime Minister Milojko Spajić (PES) explained that Radunović, as the relevant minister, did not properly process his proposal, that is, that he did not previously nominate it to the Government Personnel Commission, which is obliged to express its opinion on it before the proposal comes up for a vote at the Government session.

Spajić announced that the Government will decide on the appointment of Mikijelj as director of the Public Company for Coastal Zone Management in the new mandate when the Minister of Spatial Planning, Slaven Radunović, prepares an explanation for the appointment.

"It's not about specific people for this or that position or the infantile need to tell someone not to look bigger in the mirror - but about the principles of why someone is appointed to that position and that all procedures must be followed when appointing. When the minister prepares an explanation that was not ready last time - we will consider his proposal and declare it at the Government session," Spajić said at the time.

Emphasizing that they do not want their public appeal to be interpreted in any way in a political context, the management and union of the ferry line have announced that they do not want to influence personnel decisions at the top of Morski Dobr.

"However, we would like to highlight the extremely constructive role of the current director (Mladen Mikijelj – ed.) in the functioning of our Sector. Without any kind of pressure on the employees, he left the management of the Sector to professionals. From the selection of personnel regardless of national, religious or political affiliation, through the organization of work, to making decisions related to the technical correctness and functionality of the ships, he has enabled us to act in full autonomy. Every one of our problems and requests was heard without scheduling a meeting, and he approached the solution of the problem without hesitation," stated the managers and union representatives of the employees of the ferry line.

They recalled Mikijeljev's, as they say, "key role in returning the ferry line to state ownership."

"We believe that he is a guarantee that the ferry line will not end up in private ownership again. Without his attitude, all these impressive successes of the Maritime and Coastal Transport Sector, which also represent the success of the state, would not be possible. Increasing revenues, improving the quality of services, various discounts and benefits for the citizens of Tivat and Herceg Novi, the police, the army, health institutions and the disabled, are just part of these successes. No less important is the multi-million-dollar income that has finally been flowing into the state coffers for two years. Because of all this, we fully support the current director for re-election as head of JPMD," the ferry line's managers and union members said in a public address.

They stressed that the current situation is serious and warned the authorities that "it requires maximum seriousness, consideration of possible consequences and the most urgent response."