Five of the seven members of the State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (SCPC) spent 2.319.031 denars in 2013 for travel expenses alone. The overview of the travel expenses for the other years is pretty much the same. At the beginning of this year, another scandal broke out, immediately after the one with the SEC, so the Commission resigned, with the exception of two people. The anti-corruption commission is headless as of March this year. You will see in the text below why this is important. What is it about?
The architects of the pogrom and anti-corruption
The architects of the pogrom over the democracy and the state have done everything for the system to have at least a dual purpose. To ensure continuous stealing and abuse of the institutions and the media in order to silence those who do not think the same, and at the same time to be under the radar of the international community.
That’s how they were thinking when the SCPC was being formed. Members of the Commission were needed who were obedient and ready to protect the crime of the Family, to abuse their position and to attack those who are in the little black book with enemies. In the remaining time, not to work at all, because there is someone to do the job – the Secretariat, where diligent, modest and dedicated people work, whose voice is not heard and whose salaries are around 400 euros.
And while the administration kept filling itself with thousands of party soldiers, this institution, which should be in the first lines of the fight against corruption, has half the staff that is anticipated with the systematization. Of the 51 job positions in the Secretariat, only 22 are occupied. Unbelievable. Grujo filled the system, but left more than half of the job positions vacant here.
The employees demanded a life
And now, when a new anti-corruption law is being passed, the employees in the Secretariat have demanded more (life). Just this year, from January until October, 393.327 denars have been paid for travel expenses for Farije Aliu and Sejdi Halili, the two that didn’t resign from the SCPC. As I informed you in the previous texts about this corrupt anti-corruption commission, these two rarely showed up at work. But they do receive their salaries and reimbursements for travel expenses regularly.
During this time, the people employed in the Secretariat, on whose backs this institution actually functions the entire time, work every day for modest salaries. Without any special compensations for overtime work when they have to fill out or review hundreds and thousands of forms in a very sensitive area such as anti-corruption and conflict of interest, under constant pressure because of deadlines and ruffians in politics who often called them in these past years.
They weren’t enabled any career advancement, which is normal for the institutions, for eight years. Blocked in all possible ways. The members of the SCPC led by Igor Tanturovski (who is now enjoying himself in the rich appanage) had been completely against any such rewarding of the Secretariat employees, and on top of everything, there was also the ugly attitude and mobbing they had carried when they governed the institution in the last years of the Regime.
The people from the Secretariat had also been called on to help in creating the new law on anti-corruption and conflict of interest. They had participated in almost all stages of the drafting of the law. Up to the last one, when their salaries were to be sanctioned. Then, they hadn’t been called. And now, the law that’s supposed to be put before the MPs these days, treats them just the same as before.
Millions for the bosses, miserable salaries for the employees
Do you remember the amount paid for just five of the seven members in the Commission? Over two million denars for one year! The two alone who hadn’t resigned spent almost 70.000 euros until October. For travel expenses!
The estimation offered by the trade union organization of the SCPC Secretariat on the increase of salaries is just over three million denars annually. However, this is not anticipated in the new law proposal, unless the MPs don’t oppose this now and demand, through amendments, for the injustice to be corrected.
If they decide to do so, I would suggest to them something else: to consider the possibility to give the employees in the Secretariat a status similar to the one that the regulatory bodies and customs have for instance. To give them more that that! Such a step would improve the fight against corruption and conflict of interest in many ways.
And that’s not the end of the proposals for a better and more efficient SCPC, in which the employees are provided with social justice, there are more proposals. How can we achieve a truly independent SCPC? The key is not only in the salaries.
Independence and practical reconciliation
The budget of the SCPC for 2019, according to announcements, will be 450.000 euros. This is an increase of around 1000.000 euros compared to previous years. This also includes some 60.000 euros for maintaining the electronic system (the one donated by the EU, still not in use). As a comparison, the budget of the Montenegro anti-corruption commission is 1.5 million euros, and 1.7 million euros of Slovenia.
Perhaps they should think about these figures. And vote on a law according to which the budget of the SCPC will be a fixed per mil of the annual budget of the state, thus the institutions will be entirely independent from the will of the politicians. But political will is needed for this. So let the taxes for the rich increase even more! But I will write in the next text about my support for the tax increase. Now let’s remain on the law on anti-corruption…
Here’s an occasion for practical reconciliation between the left and right side in the plenary hall of the Parliament. Against all those who are prone to corruption and conflict of interest, and in favor of public money and honest politicians.
The state (government) should not spare in the fight against corruption. Moreover, it should look at it as an investment. Professionals who know their work and who are not on the verge of their existence should work in the institution that needs to set the course in that struggle. They should have access also to knowledge and continuous upgrading of their skills, people who will be the guardians of public money and will be preventing conflict of interest. The Secretariat has precisely such people. Let’s hope that parliament will vote on decent anti-corruption people who will take the positions in the Commission.
