The media center calls on Vesna Radulović, the president of the RTV Podgorica Council, to urgently convene a session of the City RTV Council and dismiss acting executive director Vladimir Otašević because he was elected contrary to the Decision on Amendments to the Decision on the Establishment of a Limited Liability Company Local public broadcaster Radio Television Podgorica, it was announced from that non-governmental organization (NGO).
"A person who meets the conditions prescribed by the Decision can be elected as the acting executive director of Gradska TV, which, among other things, stipulates that 'a person who is a citizen of Montenegro, with a residence in Montenegro, who has at least VII1 level of educational qualification and at least ten years of experience with a higher professional education, of which at least five years in management positions in areas relevant to the performance of activities,'' states the statement signed by the director of that NGO, Goran Đurović.
As they pointed out, they turned to RTV Podgorica with a request for free access to information and requested documentation on the candidates for acting executive director of Gradska TV.
DON'T MISS IT
They said that so far they have only received documentation for candidates employed by Gradska TV.
"We hope that the president of the RTV Podgorica Council, Vesna Radulović, will try to get the documentation for the remaining candidates as soon as possible, including Vladimir Otašević," it added.
They emphasized that, according to the available information, Vladimir Otašević is a public official because he is a member of the National Council for the Fight against Corruption, and the Decision stipulates that a public official cannot be elected as the executive director of RTV Podgorica.
The Media Center said that it is not known how Vladimir Otašević fulfills the requirement that he has "at least five years in management positions in areas relevant to the performance of his activities" because, as they say, he has not managed radio or TV broadcasters.
"Vladimir Otašević, according to the knowledge of the Media Center, obtained the VII 1st degree of qualification in March 2022 and does not have the required 10 years of experience with a higher education," the announcement reads.
They said that the session of the Council of RTV Podgorica, which was closed to the public at the suggestion of Council president Vesna Radulović, reveals not only the personal character and lack of integrity of the members of the Council, but also the character and integrity of the subjects who appointed them to this position.
They said that it was "unbelievable" that the representative of non-governmental organizations, Zoran Rakočević, agreed to close the session to the public.
The only reason that explains why the representative of the NGO, which, as they state, would have to advocate for full transparency, advocated excluding the public is that Rakočević was nominated as a member of the Council by, among other NGOs, the NGO "Lupa", whose founder he is Vladimir Otašević.
They said they believed that Zoran Rakočević was "returning a favor to Otašević".
"Instead of excluding himself from the vote due to a conflict of interest, he did everything to get the one who previously supported him to be elected as a member of the RTV Podgorica Council. The NGOs that supported Zoran Rakoćević as a member of the RTV Podgorica Council have the responsibility to advertise themselves and react, because if they remain silent, they will show that they agree with the violation of regulations in which the person to whom they have transferred their credibility also participates," the announcement states.
They said that on the other hand, the relationship between the representatives of the Union of Employers of Montenegro (Vesna Radulović), the Union of Trade Unions of Montenegro (Tatjana Džudović) and the University of Montenegro (Tatjana Novović) is not too surprising.
"There is no room for great surprise because the management of these organizations and institutions in previous years were proven loyal to those in power. It used to be DPS, and now it is PES," added the Media Center.
They said that they state this because they believe that the entire process of appointing Vladimir Otašević is politically guided by the most influential constituent of the government in the capital (PES), because, as they say, that is the only way to explain how a person who does not meet the prescribed conditions can be appointed such a majority to the position of executive director of RTV Podgorica.
They pointed out that they believe that the support for the appointment of Vladimir Otašević is political, and that the management - former and current - of the Union of Employers of Montenegro, the Union of Trade Unions of Montenegro and the University of Montenegro "will somehow charge for the services rendered".
They invited Vasilij Čarapić (member of the PES), Mitar Šušić (member of the coalition "For the Future of Podgiorica") and the President of the Capital Assembly Jelena Borovinić Bojović, to make a statement regarding the process of appointing Vladimir Otašević.
"Councilmen Mitar Šušić and Vasilije Čarapić were the most active in the preparation of changes to legal acts that were supposed to lead to the liberation of RTV Podgorica from inappropriate political influence, so it is interesting to hear their view of what actually happened," the announcement reads.
The media center compared the election of Vladimir Otašević to the illegal election of Boris Raonic to the position of general director of RTCG.
"The fact that some DPS propagandists (such as Tamara Nikčević) will not soon be on Gradska TV does not mean that the violation of regulations is allowed and that instead of proven professionals, such as Andrijana Kadija, politically and religiously suitable persons without significant references are appointed", it is stated.
"If the current government in Podgorica, led by PES, imagines the professionalization of public media services like this, then it shows that the heritage has the same 'values' as DPS, and that there is no change in the system and professionalization. All the regulations proposed and proposed by the Media Center and others NGOs with the aim of professionalizing public media services, in the implementation phase, politicians driven by personal and party interests to control public media are meaningless," the announcement concludes.
Bonus video:
