Centre for Civic Education (CCE) calls on the Acting Director of the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (APC), Dušan Drakić, to, before announcing new rules under which the APC could, without the consent of public officials, inspect their bank accounts and possible hidden assets through related persons, first ensure the basic prerequisite – trust within the institution itself and trust in the institution he leads.
It is indicatove that not a single member of the APC Council, which has an oversight role over the work of the Director and the Agency, has given consent for access to their own bank accounts, including those who have, on several occasions, voted for Drakić. Such a situation clearly indicates a lack of trust within that institution, which renders meaningless public calls addressed to other officials.
Announcements of new legal solutions must be based on credibility and personal example, and not on rules that even those who propose them do not follow. Additionally, the absence of willingness of the highest public officials from the executive, legislative and judicial branches to give consent for access to their bank accounts,which was their legal option but not an obligation, points to a worryingly low level of trust in the Acting Director of the APC.
More precisely, none of the heads of the prosecution service (the Supreme State Prosecutor, the Special State Prosecutor, and special prosecutors), nor the majority of senior officials, have given this consent to the APC. A similar situation is within the judiciary, where such consent has not been given by the presidents of the Constitutional, Supreme, Appellate, Administrative and Higher Courts in Podgorica and Bijelo Polje, nor by the presidents of the majority of basic courts. Also, out of 25 mayors, only eight or around 30%, have given such consent, and out of 32 members of the Government, 13 or 40%, have done so, mostly from one party (the Democrats), while neither the Prime Minister nor the majority of Deputy Prime Ministers and ministers trust the APC. Regarding the Parliament, out of 81 MPs 27 or 33% have allowed the APC access to their accounts.
CCE supports all measures that contribute to greater accountability and transparency of public officials. Voluntary consent to the inspection of financial flows can be an important step towards strengthening the integrity of public office. This is currently lacking because there is no majority confidence, both among officials in general and within the APC Council itself, in the credibility and expertise of the current leadership of the APC.
Transparency cannot be built selectively or through declarations. It requires consistency, personal example and functional institutions. Without that, every initiative, no matter how normatively ambitious, remains without real effect. Therefore, CCE considers that the APC must first strengthen its own integrity, build trust among different stakeholders, and build credibility through practice, and only then impose standards on others. That process can begin with the appointment of a director who has the knowledge, authority and integrity required for that position, and not only the support of one ruling party.
Snežana Kaluđerović, Senior Legal Advisor