The collective of the Faculty of Economics strongly denied the allegations made by the President of the Management Board of the UCG, Duško Bjelica, about the alleged return of funds to university units by the University of Montenegro.
Bjelica announced earlier today that the budget of the University in 2012 during the economic crisis was reduced from 17 to 12 million euros, and that 14 million goes to basic budget salaries for employees. "After that crisis policy of reducing the budget, the Government recommended us to carry out a different internal organization and redistribution of funds", the announcement states.
"In those circumstances, in order for employees at the University to receive their salaries, the Management Board used the provisions of the current Statute, which allow funds from all tuition fees to first go to a joint account, and then refunds are made to the faculties. This refund is made with the best possible dynamics, as far as the obligations for wages, electricity, lawsuits and other accumulated costs from the previous period allow," the statement signed by Bjelice reads, adding: "So, it is not about spending anyone's money, but about internal debts which (as well as refunds to faculties) are properly recorded and there are internal debts related to refunds which are properly recorded".
He believes that the evaluations of individuals do not stand for doing something outside the Statute. It is done, as he says, conscientiously, rationally, in the way that is only possible under the given circumstances.
"However, now that the Faculty of Economics has already dared to call my work and the work of the Board of Directors 'lawless', I must publicly ask the question why we have been without an answer and explanation for a year without an answer to the request for changes to the Statute, which would define the issue of redistribution of funds more precisely by means of a decision Governments. Those changes were previously approved by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education, so I ask why we have been stuck for so long at the Commission for Economic Affairs - KEP, whose president is our colleague, a professor from the Faculty of Economics", the announcement concludes.
The announcement states that UCG returns only 55% of the funds received by those higher education units, and not 80%, as required by Article 109 of the Statute, noting that it does so irregularly.
"Thus, the president of the Board of Directors flagrantly violates the highest legal act of the institution whose Board of Directors he chairs, for two whole years," the announcement reads.
The collective of the Faculty of Economics asked Bjelica to answer the question whether the fact that the administration of UCG has been violating the Statute, as its highest legal act, for a long period of time can be justified by stating that it is "conscientious, rational, the only way possible under the given circumstances" , and is misappropriating funds that come from the parents of our students?
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