The Mayor of Ulcinj Municipality, Genci Nimanbegu, insists that the recently concluded tender for the lease of the bathing area be annulled and that the contracts with the previous tenants be annexed, so that Ulcinj remains a competitive destination. He emphasized at today's press conference that Ulcinj remains consistent with its principles and the common position of all coastal municipalities regarding the program of Temporary Facilities in the Coastal Zone.
"This program was adopted without the consent of all municipalities. The tender was announced without their participation, and the Government and the Parliament ignored the initiatives of all coastal municipalities and the Association of Municipalities of Montenegro, which demanded changes to the law regulating the maritime domain. With such moves, the Government managed to seriously jeopardize the upcoming tourist season, precisely at a time when emitting markets are planning their annual vacations. Therefore, by canceling the tender and concluding an annex to the contract with the tenants, it would not affect the large differences in service prices, which would make Ulcinj a competitive destination. Let Ulcinj remain the pearl of the Adriatic, preserved and open for future generations," said Nimanbegu.
He stated that in recent months the public has witnessed the adoption of the Program of Temporary Facilities and Locations in the Coastal Zone without a positive opinion from any coastal municipality, without adopting a price list and with the hasty organization of a tender in which the newly founded company "Eagles Hills" of the famous investor Muhamed Alabara also participated.
The company "Eagles Hills" submitted the highest bids for about ten connected Učinj beaches on Velika Plaza in the tender announced by the Public Company for Coastal Zone Management (JP).
"Only with mutual understanding and agreement can a successful and long-term sustainable story be built. I want to clearly emphasize that we are not against development. On the contrary, we strongly support the economic progress of Ulcinj, but we insist that it be aligned with the long-term interests of our citizens. Our vision is not narrowly focused exclusively on tourism. The world is changing rapidly, and we must not allow Ulcinj to remain dependent on only one sector. Therefore, we are working to diversify our economy through investment in agriculture, nautical tourism, the IT sector, manufacturing and other modern economic sectors. In this way, we ensure a stable and prosperous future for all our citizens," said Nimanbegu.
Mohamed Alabar attended a meeting with Spajić unannounced
Nimanbegu confirmed that last Friday in the office of Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, he met with Alabaro, the owner of the Eagle Hills company, which made a real gift to the public in the recent tender for the lease of beaches in the southernmost city. He said he was quite surprised when he saw Alabaro in the Prime Minister's office.
"In the extended tender, in which the company Eagle Hills Montenegro participated, an unprecedented organized landing took place, synchronized with the institutions of the system. On Friday, I had a meeting with the Prime Minister, which, to my surprise, was also attended by Alabar, a real estate investor whose company offered the highest amount for as many as nine beaches in the municipality of Ulcinj. At that meeting, as well as through subsequent statements to the media, we were told that there was interest in investing in our municipality. I clearly pointed out that serious shortcomings were made in the planning process and discussions about investments, because for truly sustainable development, it is necessary to include all parties who share a common vision," said Nimanbegu.
He announced that Alabar will present the vision for the development of Ulcinj in more detail in the coming days, and that the local government, through the Assembly and other relevant institutions, will carefully consider the best options they can offer to the strategic investor.
He also said that he was not prepared for the meeting with Alabaro, nor was he aware that he would attend the meeting in the Prime Minister's office.
"In the conversation, Alabar introduced himself and his company and the way he plans to develop his projects that he is developing in the world. However, he did not present his vision for Ulcinj and approximately what kind of development it would be. I asked him what he wanted as an investor and he replied that it should be in accordance with what the Municipality or the Government is looking for. I also asked the Prime Minister what the Government wanted and his answer was that it was a project that would be a turning point for Ulcinj, a large project, but we did not define anything. I was very careful to say that we have our interests in our program documents and that we should first hear from them what they want, what the projects are, so that we would have some answer to what is being presented for Ulcinj," said Nimanbegu. He recalled that after that, the story about the Dubai of Ulcinj, about large investments...
"But that's something we haven't seen. As the mayor, I haven't seen any project, any document, and we expect Mr. Alabar or the government to disclose whether it's a joint project or two different projects, so we can see what those projects are and then we can sit down and talk about investments in Ulcinj," said Nimanbegu.
The Ulcinj Municipal Council session, at which the topic will be discussed, will probably be held on Thursday.
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