Koprivica: The Higher Court's decision in the "Telekom" case is an important victory for justice and the state's institutional resolve

The decision of the High Court that the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution in the "Telekom" case has not expired represents an important victory for justice, responsibility and the state's institutional determination to deal with corruption and abuses that have harmed the public interest for years, announced the Deputy Prime Minister, Momo Koprivica.

"This process came about thanks to the Government's decisive stance at its session on October 2 last year, to undertake criminal prosecution in its capacity as a subsidiary prosecutor on behalf of the state, as the injured party in this corruption affair," Koprivica said in a statement.

Koprivica, who is also the president of the National Anti-Corruption Council, said that on this occasion, the exceptional value of the legal interpretation and arguments of the Protector of Property and Legal Interests of Montenegro, which were presented in the complaint to the prosecutor's office, should be emphasized.

"Based on these findings, the National Anti-Corruption Council, at a thematic session on the Telekom case, established a proposal to the Government to prosecute the perpetrators of corruption crimes in the Telekom case, using the remaining and last legal option provided by the Criminal Procedure Code, in Article 59, in order to achieve justice and an institutional epilogue for the corruption affair that has also acquired international dimensions," added Koprivica.

According to him, the Government and the National Anti-Corruption Council have, from the very beginning, advocated a clear position that the state, as a direct victim in this case, must not allow such a serious affair to be left to statute of limitations, oblivion, or institutional passivity.

"That is precisely why the state, using its legal powers, undertook criminal prosecution in its capacity as a subsidiary prosecutor, guided solely by the interest of protecting the state and its citizens. This function is successfully, legally and responsibly carried out by the institution of the Protector of Property and Legal Interests of Montenegro, as the legal representative of the state," said Koprivica.

The decision of the High Court, as he stated, confirmed the correctness of the legal and institutional position of the Protector of Property and Legal Interests, as well as the decisions of the National Anti-Corruption Council and the Government.

This sent a strong message that the state will no longer silently observe attempts to evade accountability and achieve impunity for corruption at the highest levels.

"The Telekom International affair is a symbol of a system in which fictitious consulting contracts served as a cover for secret agreements that were proven to embezzle state property, multi-million-dollar interests far from the public eye, as well as the fabrication of evidence, which was admitted in the United States by certain participants in a secret meeting held in Podgorica on January 12, 2005. More than seven million euros were given for corruption through false consulting contracts, and to the entourage of former Prime Minister Đukanović," Koprivica said.

Other participants in the secret meeting, he said, received privileges and illegally donated money to the party of the former regime, thus gaining the belief that what they were doing was unpunishable.

"But institutions are changing qualitatively, the state is decisive and is not today in the service of private interests, so it can be concluded that the participants in the Telekom affair hoped for obsolescence too soon," said Koprivica.

The fight against corruption, he claims, has no alternative.

"Institutions exist to protect the public interest. Justice must not be abandoned. This case shows that there is determination to go all the way, without selectivity, without calculations and without privileged parties," said Koprivica.

He believes that this is an important step towards establishing full accountability and restoring citizens' trust in the legal order of the state.

"Montenegro must become a country in which no major scandal will end up in drawers, statute of limitations or in the zone of impunity. We will continue to insist on full institutional responsibility and consistent application of the law, because this is a debt to the citizens and an obligation to the future of Montenegro," concluded Koprivica.