Šaranović on Spajić's "room for agreement" with Brđanin: The government must not ignore the parliament

In the system of parliamentary democracy, the voice of the assembly must be respected, and decisions implemented for the sake of the common good and the rule of law.

This is what the Minister of Internal Affairs told "Vijesta" last night Danilo Šaranović (Democrats), answering the question of how he interprets yesterday's message from the Prime Minister Milojko Spajić (Movement Europe now) - that "there is room for agreement and discussion" with the chief of police Zoran Brđanin, whose dismissal was proposed by Šaranović more than a month ago.

The minister proposed this after the parliament gave a negative opinion on two reports by Brđanin. However, Spajić has not yet included the proposal in the agenda of the Government session.

After the opening of the Mateševo ​​- Kolašin road section, the Prime Minister told the journalists that Brđanin was "in full mandate" and that everything should be done "in accordance with the laws".

"I would not like to play with the nonsense that the 43rd Government played. I think there is room for an agreement and a conversation with Brđanin, as well as ways that are civilized and appropriate to democratic practice and European practice...", he stated.

Šaranović says that any ignoring of the decisions of the Assembly is not only a matter of political will, but also of responsibility before the legislative chamber, but also before the public administration - in this case, the internal affairs sector. He emphasizes that, in the spirit of parliamentary democracy, the Assembly "must be respected as the supreme representative institution".

"... I emphasize the importance of harmonizing the actions of the executive power with the decisions of the Assembly. I believe in the principle that in the system of parliamentary democracy, the voice of the parliament must be respected, and the decisions put into practice, for the sake of the common good and the rule of law," said the minister, again calling on his colleagues from the Government to consider the proposal on the dismissal of Brđanin.

Šaranović reminds that the Parliamentary Committee for Security and Defense rejected two UP reports on the fight against organized crime and corruption for the year 2022, which refer to the mandate of Brđanin, by a unanimous decision of "all present members of the government and the opposition". The deputies of the Europe Now Movement (three in total from their list), the Democrats, the New Serbian Democracy, the Democratic People's Party, the Socialist People's Party, the Citizens' Movement URA, the Social Democrats, and a special club of deputies voted for it.

He believes that this decision sends a clear message about what needs to be done.

“And I did that. I proposed the dismissal of the UP director in accordance with Article 16 paragraph 3 of the Law on Internal Affairs, and in addition, I called almost daily for such a proposal to be considered as soon as possible," the minister recalls.

Šaranović says that, "regardless of the obstructions within the security system", he undertakes to continue the "relentless fight against organized crime and corruption".

"I know the mechanisms and I have the will to implement the necessary reforms, but for the same, the support of the system and all elements of the executive power is needed," he said.

The General Secretariat of the Government (GSV) recently informed "Vijesta" that the executive power did not receive Šaranović's proposal, but that the minister submitted it to its Commission for Personnel and Administrative Affairs on December 26. GSV claims that the commission considered the proposal two days later and postponed the decision on it until Saranović submits the proposal for appointing the acting chief of police. Šaranović claims that the government body did not consider his proposal. The minister told "Vijesti" in mid-January that he can only propose a candidate for the temporary chief of police when that position is vacant.

Relations between the Europe Now Movement (PES) and the Democrats "strained" due to staffing in the security sector, and after the Government session at the beginning of December at which the Minister of Justice Andrej Milović (PES) requested immediate shifts in that part of the system.

Brđanin was returned to the chair of the first police officer by a court decision of December 7, but ten days later the parliamentary committee gave a negative opinion on two of his reports, which created the conditions for his dismissal. He was elected police director in August 2021, during the mandate of the Government Zdravka Krivokapića, which means that his five-year term expires in August 2026.

It was the first time by the Government Dritan Abazović resolved at the end of March last year, and the Administrative Court annulled that decision at the beginning of July as illegal. The government reiterated its decision in early August, and the court overturned it on December 7.

Former Minister of the Interior Filip Adzic in the explanation of the proposal for dismissal, as the reasons for this, he cited the operation of the Special State Prosecutor's Office during which the former assistant director of UP was arrested Dejan Knezevic and several police officers, due to the suspicion that they committed criminal acts in the field of organized crime and corruption.

According to the Law on Internal Affairs, in the event that the police director's mandate ends before the time for which he was appointed, the Government, on the proposal of the minister, appoints one of the managers of the internal organizational unit of the UP who meets the requirements for the director, for a maximum of six months. There are 20 organizational units in UP.

The Director of UP is appointed by the Government, based on a public competition, on the proposal of the Minister.