The wives of most members of the Government work in the state administration, although the European Commission (EC) has been pointing out the problem of political patronage and nepotism in Montenegro for years.
According to the reports of the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, the wives of six members of Duško Marković's cabinet receive salaries in institutions whose budget is determined by the Government.
Recalling that France recently adopted a law punishing the employment of politicians' family members, Damir Nikočević from the Center for Civic Education (CGO) believes that it is unrealistic to expect such a cut in Montenegro.
"This would mean that a good number of high-ranking officials would have to face the loss of their job or their partner's job, or the job of a family member. In our country, there is no institution of responsibility in the form of resignation in practice when it is clear that damage to the public interest has been done. The system, which has been created for years and in which generations of family-party followers have been employed, cannot be expected to change in the foreseeable future," Nikočević believes.
The law on the morality of political life, recently proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron, prohibits politicians from employing their family members. The law prohibits ministers, MPs and members of local authorities from employing married or unmarried spouses, parents and children under the penalty of three years in prison and 45.000 euros.
The right-wing presidential candidate Francois Fillon was particularly affected by the law, suspected of providing his wife and children with fictitious jobs as parliamentary associates. Nikočević believes that such a law is impossible to apply in Montenegro.
"The legal initiative that Macron launched in the French parliament is almost impossible to copy to small companies. Especially in societies like the Montenegrin one, where godfather-relative ties have become stronger than professional references", he believes.
Judging by past practice, Montenegrin politicians do not hesitate to employ family members in the civil service. Thus, the Prime Minister's wife Nata Marković works in the Telecommunications Agency, his son Predrag was a member of the Board of Directors of Montenegro Airlines, while his daughter Valentina is in the Central Bank of Montenegro.
Sanra Dacić, daughter of the Deputy Prime Minister Rafeto Husović, also works at the Central Bank, while his wife Jasmina works at the PIO Fund.
Nataša Pažin, wife of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Zoran Pažin, works at the Institute for Hydrometeorology and Seismology, while Ljiljana Simović, wife of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture Milutin Simović, works in the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare.
The wife of the Minister of Internal Affairs Mevludin Nuhodžić, Aida, is employed by the Protector of Human Rights and Freedoms, while Lejla Šehović, the wife of the Minister of Education Damir Šehović, is employed at the Radio Broadcasting Center.
Fillon lost because of his wife, Jelić improved after "Snimko"
Nikočević points out that practice in Montenegro has shown that nepotism is unpunished. Unlike Montenegrin, he believes, in democratic societies, politicians lose their political rating and position if they are involved in affairs.
"Due to an affair with his wife, the candidate Franosa Fillon lost his almost certain entry into the second round of the presidential elections, and in Montenegro, the Jelić couple managed the Employment Agency for years as a key intermediary between unemployed citizens and employers. "Zoran Jelić was never adequately prosecuted after the "Snimak" affair, he even made progress," he believes.
Although they state that their spouses receive monthly allowances, Ministers of Labor Kemal Purišić, Ministers of Health Kenan Hrapović, Ministers of Transport Osman Nurković, and Minister without portfolio Marija Gvozdenović did not provide information on where their partners are employed.
Nikočević believes that family employment is the most damaging to the building of institutions.
"The biggest danger for the state is that professional staff leave the public administration disappointed with the attitude towards them, which often happens," he believes.
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