An employee of Radio Television of Montenegro (RTCG), who received an apartment on preferential terms for 705 euros per square meter, is already selling the property under construction for 103.000 euros.
This stems from an advertisement submitted to "Vijesti" and soon deleted from the agency's social networks, which advertised the sale of an apartment in a building whose investor is RTCG.
A "Vijesti" source, who contacted the agency, claims to have been told that interested buyers must wait about a month while "the owner completes the necessary paperwork."
Director General of RTCG Boris Raonic did not answer whether they are aware of the fact that certain employees who are on the executive ranking list for solving housing needs on favorable terms are advertising the sale of apartments under construction, how they comment on this, and whether and what measures they will take in this regard.
Raonic did not answer who, according to the ranking list, was awarded the first-floor apartment, measuring 40 square meters, which was advertised for sale.
According to the conceptual design of the RTCG collective housing facility, published on the public service's website, there are three apartments on the first floor of the building, each measuring 40 square meters.
The ad, which was deleted from the agency's social media a few days later, shows that the one-bedroom apartment is located on the first floor of the RTCG building in the Stari Aerodrom neighborhood. "Vijesti" has also confirmed in official databases that it is in that building.
In February this year, RTCG published a preliminary ranking list for resolving the housing needs of employees, according to which 90 workers should receive real estate on favorable terms, for 705 euros per square meter.
This means that an employee pays 40 euros for a one-room apartment of 28.200 square meters, while trying to earn almost 75.000 euros by selling that property under construction.
191 employees responded to the RTCG advertisement, and dozens of lawsuits were filed due to dissatisfaction with the distribution. Several employees, it was confirmed to the editorial office, who sued RTCG requested a temporary measure from the court to suspend further distribution until the procedure is completed, in order to avoid complications and possible displacement of colleagues.
The RTCG Council last month rejected 39 out of 46 complaints against the competition list for the distribution of apartments as unfounded. They announced that three complaints were accepted in full, three in part, while one complaint was rejected as untimely submitted. The Commission for Resolving Housing Needs adopted the executive ranking list on April 23.
It is not known whether the employees who received the apartments signed the contracts and what they say.
When allocating apartments for purchase on favorable terms, certain institutions and companies, through regulations and contracts, obliged employees to spend a certain number of years in those jobs, while the employer was registered as the owner of a part of the property. An example of this is the University of Montenegro (UCG), which obliged employees to spend a decade in their working positions from the day the keys were handed over, while the institution was registered as the owner of three-quarters of the property until the expiration of that period.
The criteria for resolving housing needs, according to the Rulebook adopted in November last year, were: the importance of the job, the existing housing situation, the number of family household members, disability, length of service, and social status.
The non-governmental organization Media Center challenged certain provisions of the Rulebook, claiming that it was discriminatory and imprecise, while the RTCG Trade Union filed a lawsuit with the Administrative Court against the RTCG Council and the General Director because "by publishing a Public Advertisement to resolve the housing needs of RTCG employees, they violated the public interest and the rights of long-time professionals."
Former RTCG Ombudsman Danijela Popović addressed the Council in early May regarding the published executive ranking list for resolving the housing needs of employees, assessing that the entire process was marked by lack of transparency, selectivity and potential legal shortcomings.
"The least of my problems is that I am ranked 112th. I would have reacted if I were among the 90 who will 'solve' their housing issue. The ranking should not have been made, not only because of the brazen favoritism of a significant number of meek people, but also because of the numerous irregularities that preceded the Public Advertisement for Solving the Housing Needs of RTCG Employees," Popović stated, among other things, in her letter.
In November 2022, the Director General of RTCG signed a contract worth around 3,4 million euros with the contractor “Roaming Montenegro” doo from Nikšić for the construction of a residential building for employees of the Public Service. The five-story building with an attic, as previously announced by RTCG, contains 24 studios, 42 one-bedroom apartments and 24 two-bedroom apartments in two entrances. The contract with the contractor states that the price per square meter is 649,9 euros.
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