This publication is a result of the 18-month monitoring of implementation of laws and regulations and investigation into the specific cases of corruption and organised crime in the field of physical planning, construction and trading with buildable land.
Monitoring and investigation done within the territory administered by the Capital City Podgorica and the six coastal municipalities (Ulcinj, Bar, Budva, Kotor, Tivat and Herceg Novi) show that the physical planning and construction processes are still largely burdened with gravest disregard for laws and rules by those responsible to protect the space at the local and the national levell, but also by the so-called “strategic” investors enjoying the privilege of not always having to abide by the laws of Montenegro.
Similar situation exists in the area of buildable land management, or the disposal of such land through leasing or privatisation. In both cases it proves that the respective lease or sale agreements are rarely observed in full, but also that the competent authorities are unwilling to terminate such agreements and collect penalties for noncompliance.
Instead, through the monitoring process MANS encountered numerous examples of conclusion of additional agreements, extension of deadlines, and amendments to plans stage-manage the price and buildable land value.
In addition, MANS studied the case of the Municipality of Budva and its public companies responsible for management of property owned by the city. The review shows that only some families and one political coalition are absolutely dominating the physical planning and construction processes in this coastal municipality, while specific examples and case studies show to what extent the public interest is subjected to individual interests of city and party officials and the developers affiliated to them.
We covered the issue of investors qualified as “worthy” and “protected” on various grounds through special studies that describe urban planning connections between high-ranking officials and persons recognised as members of organised crime structures. The studies show that there are no boundaries to violation of laws and regulations by public officials at the state and the local levels when such investors need to be “met halfway”.
Finally, a special section of this publication is dedicated to the lustrous example of the Mayor of Bar which shows the consequences resulting from an array of discretionary powera in urban planning and construction areas and their unlawful use for personal gain and the gain of affiliated persons.
All the data obtained by MANS during the monitoring and investigation into specific cases, which were indicative of possible corruption and/or organised crime, were filed as criminal reports to the competent state prosecutors. Some of the criminal reports lodged by MANS in the framework of this project resulted in specific investigations against certain public officials, while unfortunately most of them are still pending.
