Mojkovac: There was no quorum to declare the termination of Delić's mandate, the session was not attended by government councilors

There was no quorum in the Mojkovac Municipal Assembly (MA) today to determine the termination of the mandate of the Mayor of the Municipality, Vesko Delić. The session was not attended by the councilors of the ruling majority.

The session was scheduled by the president of the local parliament, Marko Janketić from Democratic Montenegro, at the request of the Ministry of Public Administration (MPA), which is requesting that the councilors declare the termination of Delić's mandate by force of law.

"I did what was my institutional obligation. The fact is that the councilors did not show up. In a conversation with the councilors, we will agree on the continuation of the session," said the President of the Mojkovac Municipal Assembly, Marko Janketić, to "Vijesti".

The Civic Movement URA councilors' club, which is part of the government in Mojkovac, told "Vijesti" that there are strong disagreements with the position of the Ministry of Public Administration.

"Given that there are significant disagreements with the position of the Ministry of Public Administration, the Civic Movement URA councilors' club will not, through its actions, deny anyone the right that someone believes they are entitled to, until all legal instances have ruled on this issue. No matter how this situation is resolved, one thing is clear: ultimately, the best judgment on whether Vesko Delić is worthy or unworthy of performing the function of the Mayor will be made by the citizens of Mojkovac in the elections on June 13 next year," said Dragan Babović, president of the GP URA councilors' club in the Mojkovac Municipal Assembly.

The opposition Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) said that the actions of the ruling majority are harming Delić the most.

"They did not come to the Municipal Assembly, but they occupied the Municipality. They do not respect the decisions of the state bodies of Montenegro. I would not be surprised if they proclaimed an 'independent Republic of Mojkovac' at the next session. They are causing the most damage to Delić, because in official state acts he is not the president of the Municipality, so his actions from that position are not legal. Also, since they are tied to the mandate of the president, the vice presidents are in the same situation," said the head of the Mojkovac DPS, Predrag Smolović.

The ministry refers to the final verdict by which Delić, an official of the New Serbian Democracy (NSD), was sentenced to a suspended prison sentence for abuse of office, because four years ago he illegally appointed the Chief of the Municipal Police and the Head of the Protection and Rescue Service in Mojkovac.

Delić, meanwhile, requested that the Ministry suspend the proceedings, claiming that a suspended sentence cannot be grounds for the termination of his position.

The Ministry of Public Administration pointed out that the mandate of the municipal president terminates by force of law on the day the verdict becomes final, from which time the deadlines for electing a new president begin to run, in accordance with Article 66 of the Law on Local Self-Government.

The Ministry recommended to the President of the Mojkovac Municipal Assembly and the Assembly to obtain the judgments of the Higher Court in Podgorica and the Court of Appeal as soon as possible and determine the date of their finality, and to adopt an act stating the termination of the mandate of the President of the Municipality, Vesko Delić.

They also recommended that measures be taken to appoint a vice president who will act as president until a new president is elected, and that a new president be elected no later than 30 days after the verdict becomes final.

The Ministry warned that if the president is not elected within that period, the Assembly may, upon the proposal of the Government or at least a third of the councilors, make a decision to shorten its mandate. If the president of the Municipality is not elected by then, the Government of Montenegro shall appoint a commissioner who will perform that function until the election of a new president.