O'Connell: Politicians and Commanders Send Job Lists

Procureing Organization ( The OSEP and the United Kingdom Embassy have signed memorandums of understanding, aimed at establishing transparency, responsibility and public accountability of the OSP.

In the case of the signing, the need for the OSP to have independence in its work, in order to exercise the competencies and responsibilities independently, impartially and without outside influence.

British Ambassador Ruair O'Connell has said public procurement has always been problematic in Kosovo, until he has declared it very important that this institution have full independence.

The ambassador has said it is very important that co-operation begins today and that will provide technical support in three areas, such as improving the quality of consistency of decisions, improving the organisational structure of the OSP in order to boost efficiency and raise the level of OSEP co-operation with other public procurement institutions.

It is no secret that public procurement in Kosovo has been problematic, not now, not a few months earlier but has always been problematic. It is very important for Kosovo and your partners for public procurement to be corrected. 40 to 60 per cent of Kosovo taxpayers' taxes are spent on public procurement, meaning that if this system doesn't function there's no chance that these taxes are used properly, there's no way that Kosovo citizens will have access to the services they deserve, and there's no chance there will be a healthy democracy in Kosovo, because this amount of taxes will be misused for political reasons. We understand very well how difficult and sensitive OSP's duty is and how difficult you are. In the past the OSP has had problems, we have to accept the truth, there have been problems with professionalism, there have been problems with decisions that in one way, the next case in a very different way, we can assume that this is not competent, but may also have political impact on organ”, Ambassador Osy Connell said.

He said he hopes that with the beginning of co-operation there may be little hope in this area.

O'Connell has praised the Kosovo government's decision to make a decision to use the memorandum to recruit the two members of the OSP board.

According to him, this is a welcome step, as according to him, the OSP is a very important institution in Kosovo and should have people on board and staff on merit behind transparent processes by not creating debts, favors to anyone. He also said that there must be people who can carry out merit and who do the work in an appropriate manner not to come to positions based on the interests of individuals or groups.

“Rescription remains problematic in Kosovo, we have had some successes with the projects, but some cannot say more than fingers, but every day when jobs are declared in one institution or another, at the hospital, the faculty, the director has to receive the call from someone, a politician, from a so-called commander with a list of names. We all know, and this is a recipe for state failure. So the Government's decision to use the recruiting project is welcome and we hope that we will have people board the OSP on the basis of merit, because much is important”, he said.

Meanwhile, OSEP Chairman Blerim Dina has said they need more independence in the OSP, in order to exercise competencies and responsibilities independently.

“The mutual co-operation and support that the OSEP will accept from the British government will be formalised through this memorandum of co-operation, which, in a primary aim, has improved the quality and efficiency of the OSP by simultaneously establishing the transparency and accountability of this institution in relation to the public. I'm going to save you from talking about OSEP function and achievements today, but we believe and are aware that the OSP has room and opportunity to improve the quality and efficiency of work, this very legitimate demand of the public and international factor. In this regard, I assure them that we are of great devotion and seriousness. Like other times, even today it re-focused the need for more independence in the work of the OSP, which OSP to exercise independently, impartially and without influence and interference from the Jas of”, he said.

He voiced confidence that with support offered by the United Kingdom, but other institutions will succeed in overcoming these challenges in order to improve the work of the OSP