Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare grossly violated the Law on Financing of Political Entities and Electoral Campaigns during the election campaign for local elections in Tivat, because it had not published statements of account with regard to beneficiaries of social welfare in the form prescribed by law, shows the analysis of MANS.
The Law on Financing of Political Entities and Electoral Campaigns clearly stipulates that the Ministry in charge of Labor and Social Welfare collects statements of account that contain information on the amount and number of beneficiaries of all forms of social welfare during the election campaign, as well as information on the types and recipients of social welfare, taking into account the protection of personal data.
Yet, instead of the actual statements, which are the only indicator of social payments in the pre-election period, the Ministry compiled information which shows only aggregate data on certain material benefits, which flagrantly violated the Law on Financing of Political Entities and continued the earlier practice of concealing information on social payments.
On the occasion of the disputed treatment by the department headed by a former MP of the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists Zorica Kovacevic, MANS has sent several initiatives to the Agency for prevention of corruption, which is the key institution in controlling the legality of the actions of state authorities during the election campaign.
However, instead of ordering the Ministry of Labor to publish the statements of account, as the law prescribes, the Agency rejected the MANS’s initiative, fully accepting the explanation of the Ministry, which freely interpreted the law and assessed that there was no obligation, according to the Law on Financing of Political Entities and Electoral Campaigns, to publish all the data collected, but only those that do not jeopardize the personal data of beneficiaries of social welfare.
The Agency certainly had the power to order the Ministry to deletes personal information (names and numbers of bank accounts of beneficiaries of social welfare) from the statements of account, but to display other information, such as the date of the payment, amount or name of the bank. However, the Agency has again shown that it is an “extended arm” of the ruling party and that there is no intention to seriously control the possible misuse of state resources during the election period.
Such conduct is particularly problematic not only because of the local elections in Tivat, but also because of the upcoming parliamentary elections announced for the fall, because the non-compliance to the Law on Financing of Political Entities and Electoral Campaigns would certainly not contribute to greater confidence in the electoral process that has been marred in the recent years, especially after the disclosure of the “Tape Recording” affair.
In previous election cycles, payment of social benefits was just one of the most common models of abuse for exercising political influence and vote-buying. Due to the infamous Pljevlja case, MANS has uncovered a mechanism that is used by the ruling party for vote-buying in the field through the payment of social welfare.
By means of this mechanism, the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare transferred money to local social welfare centers, from which it was further distributed the field. A vote in Pljevlja on the eve of the early parliamentary elections in 2012 was worth €50, but a parallel discovery of MANS showed that the same model had been used and in other places.
Confusing payments to certain beneficiaries
Individual statements of account for the expenditures made in the pre-election period of Tivat local elections, which were published by the Center for Social Work in that town, show at least confusing payments to certain beneficiaries.
Thus it can be seen that the Tivat company “Adriatic Marinas”, which deals with the elaboration of construction projects, received €13,700 in March. “Sporting Group” from Budva, which is registered as a company for gambling and betting in the Central Registry, received €15,600.
Budva company “Talas M,” which is registered as a travel agency, received €1,100, while Kotor-based “Abba International”, which deals with the wholesale of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels and related products, got around €1,000.
Official data also show that Tivat Center for Social Work paid a little under €1,200 to a souvenir store from Kotor, while it paid €2,100 to “Ben-Kov” from Tivat (registered for the trade of miscellaneous motor vehicles).
On the grounds of the Law on Free Access to Information, MANS has requested the information from the Center for Social Work in respect of those payments, to accurately determine their purpose.
This text is created with the support of the European Union and the U.S. Embassy Podgorica. Network for Affirmation of Non-Governmental Sector – MANS is solely responsible for the contents of this article, and the views taken herein shall not in any case be considered as those of the donors.
