Healthcare institutions should be headed by experts and capable managers, not party cadres, the non-governmental organization Krug života concluded, and the Civic Alliance (GA) believes that the depoliticization of public administration is necessary for the establishment of responsible institutions.
Most of the leading positions in health institutions in Montenegro are covered by members of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), three are from the Social Democratic Party, and only one is unaffiliated.
After the babies were infected, the Board of Directors of the Bjelopolje General Hospital appointed Biserka Bulatović, who, according to the media, is a councilor of the DPS in that city, as the acting director of that health institution.
The president of the NGO Krug života, Dejan Cvijanović, told the MINA agency that they were not surprised by that data and that depoliticization of top positions in healthcare is necessary.
"We support depoliticization and those positions should be filled by experts, people who are capable in terms of management to dedicate themselves to such a complex job," said Cvijanović.
The coordinator of the program in GA, Edin Koljenović, said that the depoliticization of public administration is one of the key steps for the establishment of transparent and responsible institutions.
"It is known that in Montenegro there is a strong octopus of party-friendly ties that has captured the functioning of state institutions for decades. However, as much as this is a fact that we are all already used to - and we shouldn't be - the fact that only one person is not a party member the staff is more than worrying," said Koljenović.
He assessed that it is unnatural that all quality Montenegrin doctors are interested in politics and that this is another way they want to contribute to society.
"On the contrary, this is another proof that directorships in Montenegro are earned not by knowledge and professionalism, but by party involvement and merit from pre-election campaigns. This entails the impossibility of establishing professional and strong institutions and their administrations, because such directors are not responsible for the quality of their work and expertise," Koljenović said.
He said that it is "a disease of public administration in general".
"It is particularly worrisome that this is happening in health care, so the need for its depoliticization is greater. This must be a warning and a call to change the regulations that allow directors of health institutions to be elected in this way and be burdened by politics as soon as possible," said Koljenović.
According to him, society and the civil sector have an obligation to take advantage of the moment and exert a stronger influence on the urgent change of the existing situation, "because political parties and directors who are party cadres will not initiate it themselves".
"As a result of this way, the lack of objective responsibility, the cover-up of previous cases, we also had an event in Bijelo Polje when a baby lost its life," Koljenović told the MINA agency.
He reminded that, in addition to healthcare, numerous areas are burdened by party cadres who are at the head of institutions.
"GA requested changes to the procedures that allow the school principals to be party cadres in the educational system and then transfer the influence on the employment of teachers and professors because the procedures allow them to do so," concluded Koljenović.
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