Civil servants broke the law, participated in election campaigns

There was no different this time in the campaign for early elections for the Kosovo Assembly, thus having a “tradition” on the part of civil servants.

Monitorers of these processes are saying that the presence of civil servants in certain election campaigns is prior to all violations of the Labour Law, but also that of the General Elections.

Florent Spahija from the Kosovo Democratic Institute for Kosova Prees says the participation of civil servants in electoral campaigns has to do with the tendency of political subjects to have as many people in the hall as possible. Meanwhile, adds that “Democracy in Action” has ascertained the presence of civil servants in any election.

The General Election Law prohibits the involvement of civil servants and civil assets, meaning public assets, from being involved in election campaigns. Tendence is constant for civil servants to participate in the campaign and the Democracy in Action/Democracy in every election has ascertained the presence of civil servants. Even in recent elections we have found that there have been participation of civil servants in the” election campaigns, Spahija says.

Every time such a violation is found, Spahija considers that directors of certain divisions should make decisions about violations of the Election Law, as well as that of Labour.

The second is a violation of the Labour Law, and the third would have been good for political subjects to show greater respect for civil service, even the Law for General Elections by not engaging civil servants in the campaign. The CEC, which is important, has made a decision that after 5: 00 p.m. certain people may be involved, but I still consider it more ethical not to participate in the campaign civil servants”, Spahija added.

Including civil servants in election campaigns, executive director of “arise” Arton Demhayan, considers it to be the politicisation and defuncting of the Public Administration.

I think it's unfair, that civil servants don't necessarily get involved in electoral processes or politically exposed. Because then this is creating that tendency to politicise the Public Administration is also causing the functioning of civil servants. At the moment when civil servants instead of being at their place of work, they are continuing to wander through pre-election campaigns of political parties. Besides politicizing the Public Administration, at the same time they're defuncting it at the time it's having a” campaign, Demhaja claims.

Even Arbare Loja of the Group for Jury and Political Studies states that the Public Administration in Kosovo is politicised, and that on certain occasions civil servants are being exploited to fill the halls. What Loja says certain political parties should be fined.

“During election campaigns -- of several parties of elections that are organised in the Republic of Kosovo -- one of the irregularities that has been identified by local and international monitors -- is the participation of civil servants in political parties' gatherings. This irregularities are also recorded in elections we have just held on October 6th, and we consider to be contrary to law in force. Competent institutions must take measures to address and fine competent parties or parties”, Loxja shows.

And in an answer given to Kosovas, the Ministry of Public Administration suggests that public officials, who run for central or local elections, should suspend the workplace seven days before the official opening of the campaign.

“tree ends five (5) days after the official closure of the campaign. All public officials who exploit their rights according to Point 1 and 2 must hand over the suspension of the job at the Human Resources Management Unit, where they work in order to forward the approval notice to the payment division at the Finance Ministry”, the Public Administration Ministry's written response reported.

On the political rights of public officials, in this response to MAP, it is said, among other things, that in the event of election in the Kosovo Assembly, the public official, who accepts the mandate, suspends the working relationship from the date of the appointment of candidate selection by the end of the current mandate.