Prosecutor's Office should increase the transparency of its work and investigate all abuses in EPS
The Higher Public Prosecutor's Office (HPPO) in Belgrade, in response to a request for access to information sent by Transparency Serbia, confirmed[1] that there is no evidence that prosecutor Bojana Savović requested a transfer from the Special Department for the Fight against Corruption.
At the same time, HPPO did not submit the requested copies of changes and additions to the annual schedule of deputy public prosecutors in 2022 and 2023, from which it would be possible to see what changes were made, when and for what reasons.[2] This information is essential because HPPO, after the testimony of prosecutors Bojana Savovic and Jasmina Paunovic, claimed there was no "removal from the case" of investigating one of the abuse cases in the EPS (Electric Power Industry of Serbia) but rather "changes in the schedule".[3] HPPO also stated the transfer of Savović from the department Fight Against Corruption took place at her request.[4]
This kind of prosecution encourages public mistrust and concern regarding the investigation of abuses and corruption. It is particularly harmful in a situation where citizens have not yet received complete information about the responsibility for illegal business and the damage caused to the biggest public company EPS, not even after four criminal charges by the Ministry of Mining and Energy filed in May 2021 – January 2022 period.
One of those criminal charges, in which an essential element was the fact that the former acting director of the EPS, Milorad Grcic, acted illegally even after the end of his mandate (as of March 15, 2017), was rejected[5] by the Belgrade HPPO with no explanation for that decision. The HPPO is now acting on the report submitted to Belgrade's First Municipal Public Prosecutor's Office.[6] The Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime did not provide information on handling two criminal reports.[7]
Transparency Serbia invites the Public Prosecutor's Office to investigate all abuses in the work of the EPS and to increase the transparency of work and decision-making.
[1] https://www.transparentnost.org.rs/images/dokumenti_uz_vesti/VJT_odgovor_na_zahtev.pdf
[2] https://www.transparentnost.org.rs/images/dokumenti_uz_vesti/Zahtev_VJT_-_godi%C5%A1nji_raspored_poslova.pdf
[3] https://n1info.rs/vesti/oglasilo-se-tuzilastvo-o-slucaju-smenjene-tuziteljke-savovic/
[4] https://n1info.rs/vesti/oglasilo-se-tuzilastvo-o-slucaju-smenjene-tuziteljke-savovic/
[5] https://transparentnost.org.rs/images/dokumenti_uz_vesti/Krivicna_prijava_-M.G._7-00-15-2021-01_od_27.5.2021._-_Vi%C5%A1e_javno_tu%C5%BEila%C5%A1tvo_u_Beogradu.pdf
[6] https://transparentnost.org.rs/images/stories/inicijativeianalize/Krivicna%20prijava%2017.1.2022.%20-%20Prvo%20osnovno%20javno%20tuzilastvo%20u%20Beogradu.pdf
[7] https://transparentnost.org.rs/images/dokumenti_uz_vesti/Krivicna_prijava_-_7-00-16-2021-01_od_27.05.2021._-_Tu%C5%BEila%C5%A1tvo_za_organizovani_kriminal.PDF
https://transparentnost.org.rs/images/stories/inicijativeianalize/Krivicna%20prijava%2020.12.2021.%20- %20Tuzilastvo%20za%20organizovni%20kriminal.pdf
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