Salaries two triple: Undeclared Money of Serbian List Officials

In April 2021, Serbian List Chairman Goran Gakiq reported to the Kosovo Anti-Corruption Agency revenues earned last year. He declared salaries of about 1,000 euros as deputy prime minister in the past Kosovo government, led by Avdullah Hoti, but in this agency he has not reported the revenues he receives from work in the Serbian system.

Rakiq has not stated at the Kosovo agency that he holds two functions within the Serbian system, that of the director of the Public Services Company in northern Mitrovica “respectively. Standard”, as well as retaining the post of assistant at the High Economic School in Pec, operating within the Serbian system. This school has moved to Leposaviq, the municipality in northern Kosovo, inhabited by Serb majority. For these two posts, Rakiq has received a salary of about 750 euros.

Rakiq has also not stated to the Serbian agency the revenues he receives from Kosovo institutions.

Following the February 14th elections, where Albin Kurti was elected prime minister, Rakiq was appointed to the Kurti Government Minister for Kthim and Community.

Other officials from the Serbian List also have double posts and salaries.

Igor Singhi, deputy chairman of the Serbian List, is the deputy deputy of the Kosovo Assembly. In its declaration of property to the Kosovo Anti-Corruption Agency last year, Sini reportedly receives salaries from the assembly of about 2,000 euros a month. In contrast to Rakiqi, he also reported the revenues he holds from the position in the Serbian system, such as at Serbia's Pension Security, where he has claimed to receive about 5,000 euros a year. He has also declared that he receives a salary of 7,000 euros annually from the Economic Faculty in North Mitrovica.

Meanwhile, according to the Serbian Agency for Prevention of Corruption's public data, Igor Sinimen is also said to be chairman of the Most Network Board (the Serbian-language media situation in Kosovo), which it receives twice worth 420 euros.

The enemy has not declared in the Serbian agency the revenues he earns from the posts he holds in Kosovo institutions.

The deputy head of the Kosovo Assembly from the ranks of the Serbian List, Slavko Simi, has declared in Kosovo the revenues it receives from Kosovo and Serbian institutions, in which it is head of Mitrovica's “crek. Last year, Sini has claimed to have won about 30,000 euros as deputy head of the Kosovo Assembly and about 8,000 euros as head of the Mitrovica district.

However, he did not declare in the Serbian agency the revenues he earns from the posts he holds in Kosovo institutions.

Although other Serbian List officials hold double posts, which are easily observed even on the websites of institutions or companies, their names do not figure out the Serbian Agency for Prevention's public data date.

For example, Kosovo Parliament deputy from Serb List ranks Ivan Todosijevich is chairman of the interim municipal body in Zvecan, which is within the Serbian system.

MP Ljubinko Karadzic is chairman of Pristina's interim municipal authority. Zoran Mojsilovic is also deputy of the Kosovo Assembly and also holds the post of director of the sports centre in northern Mitrovica and assistant at the Faculty of Sports and Fiscal Education in Leposaviq. Verica Qeraniq is deputy of the Kosovo Assembly and is also employed as an economist at the National Employment Service.

Similar situation is true of mayors in Kosovo. Bratislav Nikollic is chairman of Shtrpce under the Kosovo system and co-ordinator of the Sterpce interim municipal organisation under the Serbian system. Zoran Tolic is chairman of Leposaviqi under the Kosovo system, and the same post holds under the Serbian system.

Milan Radojevic is chairman of northern Mitrovica, who receives wages from Kosovo's budget, but is also the director of the Pension and Invalidary Insurance Fund in northern Mitrovica.

Amy: Dual function and wages as a result of nonco-operation

The executive director of the CaviKos platform, Donika Emini, told Radio that double salaries of Serbian List officials are, in fact, the result of the lack of co-operation between the Kosovo and Serbian Anti-Corruption Agency and added that everyone is aware of this “phenomen”.

She said she believes this issue is political nature, and that both sides are simply looking to fate that Serbian List officials do not report all their income to the Anti-Corruption Agency of Kosovo and Serbia.

This is all happening for political reasons. Serbia wants to preserve its influence in northern Kosovo, and Kosovo desperately wants to integrate residents living in the north, at least on paper. That's obvious, it's nothing new, it happened before. Both agencies (for fighting corruption) know about it (double income), both governments know it as well, but no one can document or sanction (officials) because both sides do not co-operate”, Emini said.

According to Emin, it could easily come to criminalisation in one area because of “the legal imbalance”, because such gaps are in Kosovo and Serbia's laws, which, according to her, is again due to non-co-operation between the parties.

The mandate and work of Kosovo's Anti-Corruption Agency, for Donika Emine, is somewhat confused when it comes to controlling officials from the Albanian majority community, and she stresses that controlling the revenues and positions Serbians hold is even more sensitive.

“Sic said, the integration of Serbs in Kosovo is important and this is reflected in how many of them are part of Kosovo's system and if anything is done against integration, there could be an escalation, even this issue could be raised in dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia”, Amyni said.

Miniq: Serbian list exploits political vacuum

Zlatko Minic, associate in the organisation “Transparency Serbia”, told Radio Free Europe that the positions and double salaries of Serbian List officials are more political than legal issues. He explained that based on the Serbian Law on Prevention of Corruption, public data taken from public sources represents “everything that is obtained by the state from all levels from institutions, state companies, etc.”.

So it is possible that they (Serbian List officials) will report further revenues, but we don't see them because they don't treat them as public sources. On the other hand, it is political issue, because if these Serbian List officials consider they are some temporary institutions and that they are practically part of the state of Serbia, then they should deal with those incomes as revenue from Serbia's state institutions. Then the Corruption Prevention Agency may have to address it this way too”, Miniq said.

According to him, Serbian List officials and the Agency for Prevention of Corruption in Serbia must provide an answer to the property declaration, but also respond if they treat these revenues as revenue from Serbia's public resources or not.

He added that in the case of positions and double salaries of Serbian List officials, the political vacuum that exists between Kosovo and Serbia is used, as anti-corruption agencies of both states do not co-operate.

They're sitting on two chairs and it's not something new. It's something we know for a long time. On the one hand, it is propagand that there is no state of Kosovo, and on the other hand, Serbia's top state representatives in Belgrade and those in Kosovo sit in those institutions, negotiate with people who lead those institutions, respect the laws, and fulfill obligations defined with those” laws, he stressed.

He reiterates that this issue is more political than legal or belongs to the area against corruption, adding that it is not certain whether such an act can be sanctioned.

Minic said the question is in what way the issue of double wages can be addressed in Serbia, given the fate that official Belgrade does not recognise Kosovo as a state, which, according to him, practically cannot address this issue as the exercise of public functions.

“We cannot treat these jobs as work in Serbia's state bodies, because that job practically does not exist in the registry of public functions of the state of Serbia”, Miniq said, and added that because of the political vacuum, officials have received double salaries for decades.

What officials of the Serbian List were admonished by the Serbian Agency for Prevention of Corruption?

In mid-July, the Serbian Agency for Prevention of Corruption warned Goran Rakiqi, head of the Serbian List, and company director “Standard” for failing to declare wealth for years. Besides Rakiqi, four other officials have been involved in the move.

The withdrawal of the remark is the softest measure this agency can give officials. According to the portal Centre for Investigative Journal in Serbia (CINS), in addition to Rakiqi, this move has also been submitted to the president of Mitrovica “qark”, Aleksandar Spiriq and the director of the water pipeline company “, Miodrag Ralic. The same measure was described to the dean of the Faculty of Sports and Fisik Education in Leposaviq, Veroljub Stankov and primary school principal “Sveti Sava” in Mitrovica, Milorad Jovanovic.

Meanwhile, the legal process against former Health Centre director in northern Mitrovica Milan Ivanovic is not yet complete.

Serbian list does not comment on dual functions and salaries

Radio Free Europe addressed the Serbian List to comment on the double salaries and functions of officials of this party, but also to comment on the protest of Serb residents in Vrboc. Also, from this party, it was asked why they do not declare all revenues in the Anti-Corruption Agency of Kosovo and Serbia.

Until the publication of this text, the Serbian List has returned no response, and Igor Simun, who is responsible for the media in this party, has also not responded to calls or messages sent by Radio Free Europe.

Kosovo, Serbia agencies silent

Free Europe Radio contacted the Kosovo Anti-Corruption Agency about the positions and double salaries of Serbian List officials. This agency demanded that the questions be sent in writing, adding that they would answer the same questions.

The REL has also asked the agency whether there is information that Serbian List officials do not report all of their income, including those they receive from their posts to keep in the Serbian system, and whether they can sanction the same if they do not declare these revenues. But, until the publication of this text, from this anti-corruption institution, no response has been given.

The medium also addressed the Agency for Prevention of Corruption in Serbia, but neither has the institution returned.

Serbs protest double wages

In early August, Serbian citizens began a protest near the annual interim municipal organisation, which functions within the Serbian system.

Vllboci residents, who according to the Serbian system belong to the municipality of the Year and according to Kosovo, belong to the Klokot municipality, say that in Kosovo and Serbian institutions, people living in Serbia and not in Kosovo are employed, as well as employees who receive high salaries are not hired and that there are those who have double salaries.

They get double wages and I have no salary. For 20 years, nobody wants to help these people”, Dejan Rakic, one of the protest organisers in Vrboc, told Radio Free Europe on August 6th.

Rakiq and other residents from Vrboci, who are still protesting, are demanding the departure of Minister of the Year's Temporary Municipal Organization Srdjan Nikollic. They are also seeking to negotiate with the director of the Office for Kosovo in Serbia's Government, Petar Petkoviq, who wants to explain “what is happening in Kosovo”.

Who's behind the Serbian List?

The Serbian list was formed in 2013 with official Belgrade's support. Since then, it has been the main party of Serbs in Kosovo, winning about 90 per cent of the Serb community's votes in all local and parliamentary elections.

In the last parliamentary elections, the Serbian List won the ten guaranteed seats in the Kosovo Assembly, which are reserved for members of the Serb community. Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti gave a ministry to the Serbian List (The Ministry for Return and Community). For this reason, the Serbian List addressed the Constitutional Court of Kosovo, saying it belongs to the leadership of two ministries.

Kosovo's constitution envisions a ministry to meet the Serb community and one for other non-communal communities. If the government has more than 12 ministries, as it was in this case, the Constitution says a third ministry should be given to leadership one of Kosovo's non-communal communities.

Also, all Serb majority municipalities in Kosovo are led by the Serbian List.