Milatović's Cabinet: Spajić is obliged to ensure that institutions work, not fall apart before the eyes of citizens

The Cabinet of the President of Montenegro Jakov Milatović announced today that the Prime Minister of Montenegro Milojko Spajić is obliged to ensure that institutions work, and not fall apart before the eyes of the citizens of Montenegro.

According to them, a state that is unable to enforce a judgment has lost its authority.

"The Prime Minister should immediately remove those responsible or take responsibility himself. The escape of the finally convicted former prosecutor Lidija Mitrović is yet another proof of the deep weaknesses of the rule of law in Montenegro. This is no longer an incident, but a pattern of behavior that undermines the trust of citizens and leads to the complete collapse of the system," Milatović's cabinet said in a statement.

They added that when the state cannot send a convicted person to prison, then there is no rule of law.

"There are only alibi statements and shifting blame, while citizens watch as the rule of law ceases to exist. The Prime Minister is obliged to ensure that institutions work, and not fall apart before the eyes of the citizens of Montenegro. It is no longer possible for him to hide behind bureaucracy, nor behind chains of command, nor behind phrases. This is his job, his government and his responsibility, because he did nothing when Miloš Medenica fled," the statement reads.

Milatović's cabinet said they are demanding that the prime minister immediately dismiss and replace those responsible, but also that the prosecutor's office initiate action to hold them accountable before the law.

"This is not neglect of work tasks, this is crime and corruption. Resignations are no longer an option, because they are too late. Immediate dismissals, and a public announcement of who failed, who was in charge, who controlled, who did not do the job. Justice without accountability is not justice. A state without accountability is not a state. The Prime Minister today has a choice: to dismiss those responsible, or to take responsibility himself," Milatović's cabinet said in a statement.