The "Sergije Stanić" Secondary Vocational School will no longer prepare meals for socially vulnerable citizens of Podgorica, because a few days before the contract expired, the Capital City informed the management of this educational institution that they would not continue their long-standing cooperation.
The job of preparing meals was taken over by "Markets and Markets", and that city company did not respond to questions yesterday about the staff and space necessary to carry out this activity.
The contract with the school expired on December 31, and several citizens contacted the editorial office during the holidays complaining that they had not had hot, cooked meals. They provided the editorial office with photographs showing that they allegedly received bread, French fries and pâté during the New Year and Christmas holidays. Around 600 beneficiaries receive meals from the Konik Soup Kitchen every day. According to the publicly available annual contract for 2022, the school received around half a million euros annually for this work.
Vešović: There was no interruption, it has been served and cooked since yesterday
The Secretariat for Social Welfare of the Capital City told "Vijesti" yesterday that the contract with the "Sergije Stanić" Secondary Vocational School expired on December 31, 2025, while cooperation with the local company began on January 1 of this year, emphasizing that there was no interruption in the nutrition of beneficiaries.
When asked about citizens' complaints about food during the holidays, they said that the same food was served in previous years.
"This year, as in previous years, dry food was distributed for the holidays. The service provider made an effort to make the food as diverse as possible, although dry, so there was beef, chicken, fish, fruit, sweets, dairy products...," the Secretariat's response states.
They explained that the contract with the company "Markets and Markets" was signed on time and that meals were delivered to both users who pick up food at the Soup Kitchen facility, as well as to those who have it delivered to their home address.
The Secretariat for Social Welfare pointed out that since yesterday, cooked food has been served again and that they expect that in the future, the beneficiaries of the Soup Kitchen will not face any holiday without a hot meal.
"There is continuity in nutrition, but as for all previous holidays, dry food is planned. Starting today, January 12, cooked food will be served and we expect that the beneficiaries of the Soup Kitchen will no longer have to wait for any holiday without a hot meal, all as part of improving the Soup Kitchen service," the secretary told "Vijesti" yesterday. Stefan Vesovic.
"Vijesti" asked "Markets and Markets" what criteria determined them for this activity, who and where will prepare the meals, as well as the capacities and quality standards required for preparing the meals, but the company did not respond yesterday.
Đurišić: We wanted to extend the contract...
On the other hand, the "Sergije Stanić" Secondary Vocational School, which also operates the "Radovče" restaurant, told "Vijesti" that they received notification of the end of cooperation immediately before the contract expired, verbally.
"The school received notification of the termination of cooperation seven or eight days before the contract expired. The information was communicated verbally by the director of 'Markets and Markets'." Ivan Bojović and the Secretary for Social Welfare Stefan Vešović," the response from the director of that institution reads. Miomir Đurišić.
He also said that during the conversation they were not given a specific reason why the cooperation was not continuing.
"From the conversation, we concluded that there were no objections to our work. On the contrary, at the meeting we were told that they were very satisfied with the quality of our work, which was assessed as high, with affordable prices," said Đurišić.
Responding to questions from "Vijesti", he said that there were no objections from either the Capital City or the Secretariat for Social Welfare regarding the quality, quantity, and regularity of meals.
He also claims that they tried to initiate talks about extending the contract, but were told that a new one had already been signed with the company "Tržnice i pijace".
Đurišić also responded to "Vijesti" that they were ready to continue preparing hot meals, including during the holiday period. The school's response indicates that in previous years, they had, however, prepared cooked meals for the beneficiaries.
"The school was fully prepared to continue preparing hot meals, including during the holiday period, if the cooperation were extended or renewed. Only on December 31st would beneficiaries be provided with a dry meal with cake, while on all other days, as in previous years, they would receive a hot cooked meal with salad," the response reads.
Đurišić assessed that this cooperation was important both for the students, through practical teaching, and for the users of the Soup Kitchen.
"It allows them to gain real work experience, while the beneficiaries of the Soup Kitchen receive quality meals prepared in accordance with the school's standards," he concluded.
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