Mojkovac: Proposed Delić's re-election to avoid "legal uncertainty"

The proposal for the re-election of Vesko Delić (New Serbian Democracy) as president of that municipality will be presented to the members of the parliament in Mojkovac today.

Although about ten days ago, the president of the local Municipal Assembly (MA), Marko Janketić (Democrats), said that they had not considered electing a president, now, as he explains, they have agreed on this procedure at the level of the ruling coalition in order to avoid "legal uncertainty."

According to him, for now, the only proposal is that of the ruling coalition - for the re-election of Delić. Janketić leaves it open to the possibility that other proposals may be submitted before the start of the Municipal Assembly session.

"At the coalition level, we have agreed to schedule a session of the Municipal Assembly at which, in addition to other proposals, there will be an agenda item on the election of the mayor, so as not to enter into legal uncertainty. In addition to the item 'election of the mayor', there will be a proposal for a decision on the appointment of the acting secretary of the Municipal Assembly and a proposal for a decision on the establishment of the Public Institution 'Mojkovac Museum'," Janketić told "Vijesti".

Delić's mandate expired on February 1. Janketić previously said that the Law on Local Self-Government (Article 209a) stipulates that the Municipal Assembly continues to exercise its powers until the mandates of the councilors elected in the general local elections to be held in June 2027 are confirmed, and that "the same article does not stipulate by imperative norm that the mayor must be re-elected."

"This article leaves the possibility that the mayor can be re-elected. The mandate of elected persons lasts a maximum of 60 days from the date of confirmation of the mandate of councilors elected in the general local elections. Up to this point, at the coalition level, we have not considered the possibility of re-electing the mayor. The local government is focused on making decisions and implementing capital projects that will permanently change the appearance of Mojkovac and result in economic and demographic recovery," Janketić said at the time.

According to a final verdict of the Higher Court in Podgorica, Delić was found guilty and sentenced to a suspended sentence of half a year in prison for appointing the heads of the Municipal Police and the Protection and Rescue Service in Mojkovac in 2022, even though he knew that they did not meet the legal requirements.

He is the first mayor of a municipality to receive a non-final prison sentence for illegal employment. As a result, there were no initiatives from the ruling coalition to consider Delić's position.