The government's policy of granting apartments and loans to officials on favorable terms should be a transparent system, based on merit, said the head of the Unit for Montenegro in the European Commission's General Directorate for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, Thomas Hagleitner.
According to him, in the continuation of his visit to Podgorica, he will discuss it.
He believes that it is important for it to be a transparent system, based on merit.
"That process must be transparent and based on merit," said Hagleitner at the conference on the occasion of the ninth meeting of the Subcommittee for Justice, Freedom and Security between representatives of Montenegro and the European Commission.
He said that the institutions should investigate the allegations and provide results. "The legal framework exists, but they have to do their job," said Hagleitner.
He replied that the balance clause had not been triggered.
"That is not the case. It is clear that the member states are carefully monitoring the issue of the rule of law. The accession process includes 90 percent of the work in Montenegro," said Hagleitner.
As he said, when the conference is in Brussels, it is a small part of the matter.
"The biggest part is taking place in Montenegro and that speaks of a certain phase in the future," said Hagleitner.
The head of the Working Group for Chapter 23, Marijana Laković - Drašković, on the occasion of the meeting of the Subcommittee for Justice, Freedom and Security, said that by presenting concrete results, they were convinced that the strengthening of independence, impartiality and responsibility in the judiciary, the fight against organized crime and corruption at a high level, at the very top of the agenda.
According to her, the safety of citizens is one of the imperatives in the Government's actions.
Laković - Drašković referred to some results of Montenegrin institutions.
"Intensified interdepartmental cooperation and connection of all segments of society in response to organized crime and corruption. The Police Directorate, in cooperation with the State Prosecutor's Office, initiated several activities to detect, prove and prosecute perpetrators of organized crime and corruption and achieved measurable results in that area." , said Laković - Drašković.
As she stated, in the sector for the prevention of money laundering and financing of terrorism, 121 cases were opened in three months, which is 30 percent more than last year.
"In this year, orders were issued to conduct investigations in 19 cases, against 158 individuals and 74 legal entities for organized crime, high corruption and money laundering", said Laković-Drašković, adding that special prosecutors brought 17 indictments against 112 perpetrators of criminal acts. works.
"In the indictments for corrupt criminal acts, property damage totals more than 69 million euros, and in total, almost 68 million euros have been temporarily blocked in the cases of investigation of funds in accounts with commercial banks," said Laković-Drašković.
According to her, the higher court in Podgorica passed eight verdicts, according to plea agreements.
"In total, the imposed prison sentences amount to 17 years and 11 months and 228 thousand euros were paid in the name of minor fines, 300 thousand euros were paid in the name of property benefits and more than 50 thousand euros for humanitarian purposes," said Laković-Drašković.
She added that the Government is unreservedly committed to the affirmation of media freedom and the creation of a stimulating environment for free and professional journalism.
Hagleitner assessed that the rule of law and fundamental rights are fundamental aspects of the European Union, a necessary element of the enlargement process.
"That is why progress in this area is crucial in determining the pace of the negotiation process and Montenegro has come a long way since the opening of Chapters 23 and 24. Since 2013, it has reformed the legislative and institutional framework in the area of the rule of law, which has led to the achievement of initial results in many areas ", said Hagleitner.
He stated that Montenegro's participation in international police cooperation was recognized, which resulted in successful operations against Montenegrin criminal groups.
As he stated, if Montenegro adopts the civil partnership law and regulates same-sex unions, it will make great progress.
According to him, the fulfillment of temporary benchmarks, especially for Chapters 23 and 24, should be a priority for Montenegro in the negotiations for the accession of Montenegro.
"In order to achieve the goal, Montenegro must deal with the remaining shortcomings such as media freedom, the fight against corruption," said Haglajtner.
One said that the EU wants to see the independence of all institutions and credible and effective responses to recent accusations of corruption, especially the financing of political parties.
He said that it is important that there is a parliament that fully fulfills its legislative function.
"The work of the temporary committee for electoral legislation reform is of key importance and represents the Commission's priorities," said Hagleitner.
Laković - Drašković, when asked if Montenegro can cope with the problem of migrants, replied that the country approaches the issue responsibly.
"Montenegro approaches this issue responsibly, taking into account the humanitarian aspect of the law. Priorities are in permanently solving the issue of accommodation capacities," answered Laković-Drašković.
Speaking about the judgments in the case of money laundering, she said that this year, three cases are pending at the High Court in Podgorica.
"In two cases, this year, final judgments were made, based on plea agreements. The judgments set prison sentences and fines," said Laković-Drašković.
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