Koprivica: Government initiated the use of all legal instruments to protect public interest in the "Telekom" case

The government did not remain a passive observer in the "Telekom" case, but, through its institutions and working bodies, initiated and supported the use of all available legal instruments to protect the public interest.

This was stated in parliament today by Deputy Prime Minister Momo Koprivica, responding to a parliamentary question from Uglješa Urošević, a representative of the ruling Europe Now Movement (PES).

"What specific activities have the Government of Montenegro, as well as other competent state bodies, undertaken, and on the basis of which regulations, in connection with the 'Telekom' case, in order to protect the public interest?" asked Urošević.

Koprivica said that the executive branch, through its competent institutions and working bodies, took concrete, legal and timely steps to protect the public interest and prevent this case from being permanently archived without exhausting all available legal mechanisms.

"The 'Telekom' case represents an example of high-level corruption because it relates to the privatization process of one of the most valuable state-owned companies, well-founded suspicions of covert bribe payments through fictitious contracts in the amount of 7,35 million euros, the participation of politically influential persons and significant financial interests," he stated.

He added that the fact that investigations were also conducted before foreign institutions, where guilt and bribery were acknowledged, gives the case special weight, which indicates its complexity and broader social significance.

"Telekom was privatized contrary to the terms of the tender, and regardless of the fact that the offer of the selected bidder was marked as, among other things, 'extremely unfavorable' in the Tender Commission's report. After the competent prosecutor's office made a decision based on the position that the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution had expired, the Protector of Property and Legal Interests of Montenegro filed a well-founded complaint against such a solution, pointing to the legal reasons why the case requires further review," Koprivica explained.

The Deputy Prime Minister pointed out that the National Anti-Corruption Council, as a working body of the Government, simultaneously organized a thematic session dedicated to "Telekom", which was also attended by the Deputy Protector of Property and Legal Interests. He assessed that the session had a substantive and detailed discussion on all legal and institutional aspects of the case, as well as the possibilities that the state has at its disposal to protect its interests.

"After a comprehensive analysis, it was assessed that it was necessary to use the last available legal mechanism provided for in Article 59, paragraph 3 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which allows the injured party to take over the criminal prosecution in the capacity of a subsidiary prosecutor. On this occasion, the National Anti-Corruption Council proposed to the Government to task the Protector of Property and Legal Interests with undertaking further criminal prosecution in the 'Telekom' case, as the legal representative of the state," he stated.

Koprivica said that he, as the President of the National Anti-Corruption Council, and on behalf of that body, prepared and submitted to the Government information on the case with the corresponding draft conclusion, and that the executive branch unanimously accepted the proposed conclusion and tasked the Protector of Property and Legal Interests with taking the necessary procedural actions to continue the prosecution, on behalf of the state as the injured party, in the capacity of subsidiary prosecutor, in accordance with Article 59, paragraph 3 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

"Acting on the conclusion of the Government, the Protector of Property and Legal Interests submitted a proposal to conduct evidentiary actions. Although the investigating judge rejected that proposal, citing the alleged statute of limitations, the Council of the Higher Court, deciding on a legal remedy, took a different position and determined that the criminal offense of accepting a bribe was not statute-barred. This confirmed that there are legal conditions for continuing the proceedings. Additionally, the Supreme State Prosecutor's Office submitted a request for protection of legality to the Supreme Court, but the Supreme Court rejected that request as impermissible, thus removing the last procedural obstacles that could have called into question the further conduct of the proceedings. Thanks to the initiative of the National Anti-Corruption Council, the decisive action of the Government of Montenegro and the activities of the Protector of Property and Legal Interests, the 'Telekom' case was prevented from being archived without a final judicial review of all relevant circumstances. This preserved the possibility of further criminal prosecution and ensured that state institutions use all mechanisms provided for by law to establish the full truth and possible liability," he stated.

Koprivica said that the timely reaction used the last legal opportunity to continue the proceedings, through the institute of subsidiary prosecution by the state as the injured party.

"The actions of the Government and the Protector of Property and Legal Interests contributed to the adoption of court decisions confirming that the most serious actions covered by the case were not time-barred. Key procedural obstacles to further proceedings have been removed, including attempts to definitively close the issue of time-barring. The most important result of the activities undertaken is the fact that the archiving of one of the most significant corruption cases in the recent history of Montenegro has been prevented and the possibility for the competent authorities to establish the full truth and possible criminal liability of all persons covered by the proceedings has been preserved. This case confirms the commitment of the Government of Montenegro to insist on the rule of law, institutional responsibility and consistent fight against corruption, regardless of the passage of time and the complexity of the proceedings," Koprivica underlined.