When cumulative data for the first year of the 28th convocation of the Parliament of Montenegro is analyzed, it is evident that members of the parliamentary majority chose to remain largely uninvolved, despite many being first-time MPs with a valuable platform to showcase their knowledge and skills. Among the 10 least active MPs, 80% are from the PES parliamentary group, as revealed by an overview of parliamentary activities and earnings in this convocation, presented in the publication “Political Theatre at the Expense of Citizens,” published by the Centre for Civic Education (CCE).
The authors of the publication are Nikola Đurašević, Nikola Obradović and Itana Gogić, edited by Daliborka Uljarević.
Through two monitoring cycles, the CCE monitored the activities of MPs in the 28th convocation of the Parliament of Montenegro, particularly their plenary participation and earnings, periodically informing the public with rankings of the most active and inactive MPs. The first publication – MPs and Interns Must Do Much Better – provided an overview of the first six months, while this publication covers the second six-month period and provides a cumulative overview for the period from 27 July 2023 to 27 July 2024, i.e., the first year of this parliamentary convocation.
Less than five minutes of speaking time in the second six months of the first year of this parliamentary convocation was recorded for five MPs from the Europe Now Movement (PES) – Uglješa Urošević, Gordan Stojović, Armen Šehović, Dragana Vučević, and Dane Marković – as well as one MP from the Albanian Forum, Artan Čobi. Around eight minutes of speaking time during the same period was recorded for Nađa Laković from PES and Ilir Čapuni from the Albanian Alliance. Slightly more than 11 minutes of plenary speeches were recorded for two other MPs from PES, Vladimir Bakrač and Boris Pejović, the latter being one of the Vice presidents of Parliament. Among the least active MPs in the plenary, speaking times ranged from 2 minutes and 44 seconds, recorded for Uglješa Urošević, to 11 minutes and 24 seconds for Boris Pejović.
Table: Least active MPs in the plenary from 2 February to 27 July 2024, and their earnings
MPs Urošević and Bakrač are entitled to receive a salary difference based on their other full-time engagements, which is why their earnings in Parliament are lower compared to some others. Meanwhile, MP Čapuni started receiving his parliamentary salary in October, as he previously earned through another professional engagement.
Among the 10 most active MPs in the plenary, the majority are clearly from the opposition benches – six from the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), two from CM URA, and one from the Social Democrats (SD), while Momčilo Leković from Democrats of Montenegro is representing the parliamentary majority among the most active MPs during this period.
The most active MP in the plenary during the second six months of the 28th convocation of the Parliament was the president of the DPS parliamentary club, Andrija Nikolić, with almost six hours of speaking time. He was followed by Boris Mugoša from SD and Mihailo Anđušić from DPS, each with over four hours of speaking time. MPs from DPS, including Aleksandra Vuković Kuč, Jevto Eraković, and Nikola Rakočević, along with Filip Adžić from CM URA and Momčilo Leković from the Democrats, each spoke for about three hours during this period. Additionally, Danijel Živković from DPS and Miloš Konatar from CM URA recorded over two and a half hours of plenary speaking time.
Table: Most active MPs in the plenary from 2 February to 27 July 2024, and their earnings
Among the 10 least active MPs during the first year of the 28th convocation of Parliament, those from the PES parliamentary group dominate, occupying 80% of the spots on the list.
In a year of work, MPs Uglješa Urošević and Gordan Stojović from PES spoke for only about three minutes in the plenary, while MP Artan Čobi from the Albanian Forum spoke for less than five minutes. PES MPs Nađa Laković and Dragana Vučević spoke for about eight minutes. Additionally, MP Marko Kovačević from the New Serbian Democracy (NSD) spoke for less than 12 minutes, and PES MPs Vladimir Bakrač and Boris Pejović spoke for around 13 minutes. Finally, PES MPs Dane Marković and Armen Šehović recorded slightly more than 15 minutes of speaking time in the plenary.
Among the 10 least active MPs during the first year of the 28th convocation of Parliament, those from the PES parliamentary group dominate, occupying 80% of the spots on the list.
In a year of work, MPs Uglješa Urošević and Gordan Stojović from PES spoke for only about three minutes in the plenary, while MP Artan Čobi from the Albanian Forum spoke for less than five minutes. PES MPs Nađa Laković and Dragana Vučević spoke for about eight minutes. Additionally, MP Marko Kovačević from the New Serbian Democracy (NSD) spoke for less than 12 minutes, and PES MPs Vladimir Bakrač and Boris Pejović spoke for around 13 minutes. Finally, PES MPs Dane Marković and Armen Šehović recorded slightly more than 15 minutes of speaking time in the plenary.
Table: Least active MPs in the plenary from 27 July 2023 to 27 July 2024, and their earnings
MP Marko Kovačević does not receive a salary from the Parliament but earns through another professional engagement.
At the same time, among the most active MPs in the plenary during the first year of this convocation, opposition MPs dominate – nine out of the 10 most active MPs come from DPS, CM URA, and SD, while Milan Knežević from the Democratic People’s Party (DPP) stood out as the representative of the parliamentary majority.
In the first year of the 28th convocation of the Parliament of Montenegro, the most active MP in the plenary was Andrija Nikolić from DPS, with over 10 hours of speaking time. He was followed by Dritan Abazović from CM URA, Mihailo Anđušić from DPS, and Boris Mugoša from SD, each with more than six hours of plenary speeches. MPs Jevto Eraković from DPS and Miloš Konatar from CM URA also recorded nearly six hours, while Ivan Vuković and Danijel Živković from DPS, as well as Milan Knežević from DPP, each delivered about five hours of speeches.
Table: the most active MPs in the plenary from 27 July 2023 to 27 July 2024, and their earnings
MP Ivan Vuković does not receive a salary for performing his parliamentary duties but earns his income through a professional engagement in another institution, except for occasional additional allowances, such as the one in November 2024.
The publication “Political Theatre at the Expense of Citizens” was created with the support of the Core Grant within the regional SMART Balkan project – Civil Society for Connected Western Balkans, implemented by the Center for Civil Society Promotion (CPCD), the Center for Research and Policy Making (CRPM), and the Institute for Democracy and Mediation (IDM), financially supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Norway.
The content of the publication is the sole responsibility of the Centre for Civic Education (CGO) and does not necessarily reflect the views of CPCD, CRPM, IDM, or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Norway.
Ivana Matanović, Programme Associate