Only a stable and efficient judicial system can guarantee the further progress of Montenegro on the way to the European Union (EU), said Pavle Ćupić, the program coordinator in the Civil Alliance, assessing that there is no real will to leave the state of emergency in the Supreme Court.
As Ćupić said, the fact that even the eighth attempt to be elected president of the Supreme Court failed, deepened the legal vacuum in which the highest hierarchical court in the country is located.
"It is extremely worrying that, during the voting, five judges submitted invalid ballots, that is, they did not choose any of the two proposed candidates," Ćupić told the MINA Agency.
According to him, despite the move that certainly has a negative impact on the country's European path, the Montenegrin public did not receive a clear explanation as to why the judges did not vote for one of the candidates and why the proposed names do not deserve their formal support.
Ćupić stated that the absence of the President of the Supreme Court in full term represents a serious problem for the judicial system of Montenegro.
"And taking into account that the current acting President of the Supreme Court was elected in September 2021, there is a clear public sign that indicates that there is no true will to leave the state of the Supreme Court," Ćupić believes.
He said that the actions in the previous period in which, as he stated, the interest of the citizens was clearly not the primary category, created numerous dangers for the functioning of the Supreme Court.
"Well, apart from the difficulty of making key decisions, the newly created situation can cause an increase in distrust in judicial institutions", added Ćupić.
He reminded that the EU continuously emphasizes the importance of an independent, efficient and transparent judicial system, as one of the key conditions for progress in accession negotiations.
"That is why it is logical that the Supreme Court without a president in full term will not be an exemplary institution, when we talk about chapters 23 and 24", said Ćupić.
He called on all relevant addresses to urgently find a solution to that problem and ensure the election of the president of the Supreme Court.
"Because only a stable and efficient judicial system can guarantee the further progress of Montenegro on the EU path", said Ćupić.
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