Diles set up by Kurti Government dismissals

In view of these actions, civil society representatives say it is still under scrutiny if the government Kurt is also ignoring legal procedures.

The Kosovo government has dismissed the Kosovo Public Company Board of Telecom. The decision has been made with the proposal of Economy, Employment, Trade, Industry, Strategic Investments and Enterprises Minister Roseta Hajdari. This decision, according to the minister, was necessary, since, as she said, the exchange in question has been brought to the brink of bankruptcy.

Kosovo's government cabinet has also made a decision to establish the list of surpluss with secretary-generals affected by the reshuffle of the Government of Kosovo.

Prime Minister Kurti has also warned other dismissals, in particular of public enterprise boards. However, his first deputy, Avdullah Hoti, has said this is just the beginning, implying that <x0->operation of the evacuation” will continue.

Despite Radio Free Europe's efforts to get a statement from the Kosovo government regarding what procedures it is pursuing in the case of these dismissals, an answer has not been achieved.

Meanwhile, civil society representatives say there are speculations about the procedures government Kurti has ignored in the case of dismissals made so far.

Florent Spahija, legal expert at the Kosovo Democratic Institute, speaking of Radio Free Europe, says the prime minister's legal office and the legal offices of each ministry should be taken care of in these cases, as the consequences for the state could be great.

The government is making decisions that I believe is based on law and on labour regulations and, above all, on administrative procedure. It is not easy to argue legally the outcome of one's work, but in countries where political appointments are located is much easier, while in countries where there are contested and are civil servants, it should be seen if they have legally failed to meet the conditions and it is a legitimate decision to get the” out of work, Spahija said.

In the case of dismissal or dismissal by ignoring legal procedures, Spahija says, there could be massive decisions by courts in favour of those fired, and then he says, would affect the state budget, as those persons would seek compensation.

What I would have suggested would be that the first one as well as the procedure, especially for civil servants, go on a warning, sit on a salary, suspension and not immediately leave. What we have seen to this day has largely been positions or appointed persons. But, so far I haven't read where they based that decision and there's a assumption of”, Spahija says.

On the other hand, Ehat Miftaraj of the Kosovo Institute for Justice tells Radio Free Europe that any decision being made by the government Kurti is important to reason and gain public confidence that these decisions are legal and are based on procedure.

“In any case when this government or assembly downloading boards that have not performed well or managed properly with the power they have had at their disposal, and especially in those cases when there has been suspicion of abuses, certainly the international factor and the public welcomes those decisions”, Miftaraj says.

He adds that with the change in powers or governments, as in the respect of civil servants, as in public officials, there may be an uncertainty with their jobs, but this uncertainty, Miftaraj adds, is easily managed if decisions are reasoned and point out the reasons for these changes.

The Kosovo Democratic Institute will monitor those processes that entered their scope to assess whether the purpose of this government has been good and has not been to replace these dismissals made on boards or elsewhere with present government coalition people.

Kosovo's “Law Institute has welcomed any decision aimed at returning legitimacy to these institutions. We expect the Kurti government and the Assembly of Kosovo during the appointment process or appointment of new members of boards or persons to leadership positions, to be based on merits and only through a process which ensures transparency and which ensures that the individuals assigned to those positions are meritor”, Miftaraj says.

The new coalition government between the Vetevendosje Movement and the Democratic League of Kosovo is formed on 3 February.

Kosovo's government, with prime minister Albin Kurti, has reduced the number of ministries from 21 to the previous government to 15 ministries. This reduction of government has raised civil servants' concerns about job losses. /rel/