Advisors to the Deputy Prime Minister Moma Koprivica i Milun Zogović - Milan Popovic i Predrag Bulatović They were appointed contrary to the Law on Civil Servants and Employees, "Vijesti" learned from the Government of Montenegro.
According to unofficial information, the Administrative Inspection noted this in the minutes of the extraordinary inspection and yesterday ordered the General Secretariat of the Government to "remove the irregularities within 15 days."
The editorial team's sources from the top of the executive branch claim that the procedure was initiated based on an anonymous report, which allegedly states that several people who are already retired have been appointed, which is contrary to the Law on Civil Servants and Employees.
Although they announced at the end of last week that the procedure was ongoing and that the public would be "informed in a timely manner" about the outcome, the Ministry of Public Administration did not respond yesterday to questions related to the inspection's decision regarding the two advisors.
"Vijesti" announced at the end of February that the inspection was determining the legality of the appointments of Popović and Bulatović, and the cabinets of Koprivica and Zogović never responded to whether their advisors were appointed in accordance with the regulations.
Popović was appointed to the position of advisor in mid-November 2023, and Bulatović in late October 2024.
According to data from the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, last year he received a government salary of 1.549, as well as a pension of around 1.000 euros.
Bulatović received 1.583 euros in November and December last year as an advisor to Zogović, while his pension amounted to more than 1.350...
Article 34 of the Law on Civil Servants and State Employees states that a person who is a beneficiary of the right to a pension cannot establish an employment relationship in a state body.
The same regulation, in Article 62, categorizes advisors to the President of the State, the Parliament, the Government and the Vice President as civil servants.
"The Vice Presidents of the Parliament of Montenegro and the Vice Presidents of the Government may have advisors in accordance with the regulations of these bodies," the Law states, specifying that the mandate of these advisors ends upon the termination of the mandate of the Head of State, Parliament, Government or Vice President, resignation or dismissal.
"The titles of the persons referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article, the appointment of these persons, as well as their rights and obligations, shall be regulated by the regulations of these bodies," the Law states.
Montenegro does not have a Law on the Government, so Popović and Bulatović were appointed based on Article 16, paragraph 3 of the Decree on the Government. This provision stipulates almost the same as the Law on Civil Servants.
"The Deputy Prime Minister has a cabinet. The cabinet referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article performs professional and other tasks related to the exercise of the function of the Deputy Prime Minister. The Deputy Prime Minister, in his cabinet, has advisors who, upon his proposal, are appointed and dismissed by the Government. The mandate of the advisor to the Deputy Prime Minister shall terminate upon the termination of the mandate of the Deputy Prime Minister, resignation or dismissal," the Regulation states.
The position of advisor in the cabinet of the Deputy Prime Minister is categorized as a job position in the latest Rulebook on Internal Organization and Systematization of the General Secretariat of the Government of Montenegro. The level of education is not prescribed, but the number of employees for the cabinet of each Deputy Prime Minister is, as well as the job description.
The State Audit Institution (SRI), in its Performance Audit titled "Success of Engaging Natural Persons Without Establishing an Employment Relationship in State Bodies" from 2023, emphasized that this type of engagement is contrary to regulations.
The auditors concluded that "the audited entities should conclude contracts with natural persons without establishing an employment relationship only for jobs for which there are no systematized job positions and jobs that are not within the core competence of the state body, or that they should apply the Law on Civil Servants and State Employees for all new employment."
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