MANS invites the Anti-Corruption Committee of the Parliament of Montenegro to urgently consider an application submitted to this body by the workers of Montavar Metalac with our support, more than a week ago, and whose processing could help the workers of the company to finally realize their rights.
With an application to the Committee it is requested hearing of Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Policy and Financial System, Vujica Lazovic, Minister of Economy Vladimir Kavaric, and the President of the Commission for State Aid Control Mitar Bajceta, who by their acts or omissions to act, brought the company and the workers of Metalac in the situation like this, including failures in controlling the expenditures of funds of granted state aid.
However, a key request contained in an application submitted on September 25th, it was that the Committee on Anti-corruption hears Acting Supreme State Prosecutor Veselin Vuckovic and Director of Police Slavko Stojanovic in order to determine how far the investigation of this case came, where the money disappeared for the start of production in Montavar Metalac, and who is responsible for that.
According to the workers of Metalca, the police a few months ago started to address the problems in the factory. Even the Parliament itself, through the Board of Health, Labor and Welfare in mid-September found that the state prosecution must take actions in order to establish responsibility for the situation that resulted in Metalac. However, until this date there is no information about what exactly these institutions concluded.
Due to the fact that from the prosecution and the police there is still no information on what was found out in the case of factory Montavar Metalac, while on the other side disenfranchised workers of this company for several days are on hunger strike, endangering their lives, we believe that there is no space for the delay and that the Committee on Anti-Corruption must immediately schedule a session on this matter.
It is particularly important to note that from the investigation of the police and judicial authorities may be a key to solving the problems of workers of Metalca, since if someone unlawfully took money that belonged to the factory and its workers, these funds through immediate and effective investigation and court proceedings may seize and use to settle all claims that workers of Metalca have. However, it is obvious that for some reason such proceeding is obstructed, and on the prosecution and the police side there is no will to adequately implement it, which is necessary the active participation of the Committee on Anti-Corruption in solving of this problem.
Because of that we invite the Committee on Anti-Corruption to even today schedule a session dedicated to the problems of workers of Metalac, to hear leaders from the prosecution and the police and to ensure immediate investigation in order to determine the extent of fraud at this company and responsibility for it, and to seize those assets through court proceedings and to use them to settle claims of the workers.
Vuk Maras
Director of Monitoring Program
