Bosniak: Brajović and the Administrative Board to make a decision on the abolition of variables for members of the government

Member of Parliament of the Democratic Front (DF) Branka Bošnjak asked the President of the Assembly Ivan Brajović and the Administrative Committee to make a decision to cancel the variables that were awarded to the members of the ruling coalition in addition to their December salaries in the amount of 80 percent of the average salary in Montenegro, the Movement for changes (PzP).

Deputies of the ruling majority in the parliament rewarded themselves with 387 euros each in their December salary for "significant contribution in the activities of working bodies, in the sessions of the Assembly and additional engagement".

On January 20, the DF announced that it would request the abolition of the variables that were assigned to the MPs of the ruling coalition in addition to their December salaries in the amount of 80 percent of the average salary in Montenegro.

In the PzP announcement, it is added that Bošnjak submitted today a request for the annulment of the Decision on the variable part of the salary for deputies, as well as the annulment of the Decision on the payment of the variable part of the salary for December 2017

"The Decision and Resolution are void and illegal legal acts that should not have had legal effect. The said decision is void, that is, illegal for the following reasons:

1. Pursuant to the Constitution of Montenegro (Art. 146 paragraph 1), the Decision could enter into force no earlier than the eighth day from the day of publication. This Decision entered into force on the day of its adoption. Therefore, contrary to the constitutional provision, the Decision entered into force on the day of its adoption.

2 It is unclear on the basis of which legally valid regulation the Decision of the General Secretary of the Assembly was published in the Official Gazette of Montenegro.

3. The General Secretary did not have any legal authority to issue the aforementioned acts. This means that acts passed by competent authorities and persons are absolutely null and void and cannot produce legal effect.

4. Both the Decision and the Ruling were made by the same person, which violated the principle of two-stage procedure.

5. The Collegium of Speakers of the Assembly derives its powers from Article 26 of the Rules of Procedure. Within those competences, there are not what the Secretary calls "collegium consent" and "collegium proposal". Such jurisdictions do not exist for money laundering.

6. The aforementioned "acts" violated Article 21 paragraph 1 of the Law on Salaries of Employees in the Public Sector. Namely, in order for MPs to have the right to a variable part of their salary, they should have "achieved exceptional results and quality of work".

7. The Administrative Committee of the Parliament of Montenegro has a provision within its competences that reads: "It shall issue detailed regulations regulating certain issues of the exercise of the rights and duties of deputies and officials.... and determines other compensations for employees in the service of the Assembly". In this case, the Committee did not deal with individual issues, but that is why the General Secretary of the Assembly took over the tasks. He had no right to that," the PzP statement said.

From that party, they said that based on all of the above, there are all legal reasons to annul and declare the Decision on the variable part of the salary for deputies, as well as the Decision on the payment of the variable part of the salary for December 2017, invalid.

"Bonuses were also received by employees of the parliamentary services, but for the DF it is not disputed, they want to cancel the decision on the payment of variables for the members of the ruling structure, because implementing a restrictive financial policy that is a direct attack on the citizens, and rewarding people who implement that restrictive policy is elementary it's not fair, it's not fair," the PzP statement concludes.