PDK: Ministers Gervala and Damka misused around 1.1m euros

PDK MP Ariana Musliu-Shoshi has said this is a suspicious and illegal approach through which the misuse of around 1.1m euros of Kosovo taxpayers has been enabled.

The sentence is for a “Memorandum Co-operation”, between the Ministry of Regional Development and the Swiss Caritas, under which the budget of the Republic of Kosovo is illegally spent on many of the 1m and 40 thousand euros. This agreement has been signed and is already under way, but this is only after the official approach that Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora Donika Grovalla Schwarz has signed, thus encouraging and misusing about 1 million euros. ”, MEP Musliu-Sshi said.

Musliu-Scheshi has said that doubts about this agreement are of both institutional character and financial character, about what those means were spent on.

The “Memorandum was signed on 16 August 2021, on the part of Minister Fikrim Damka and the representatives of the Swiss Parliament (CACH), where its legal status is the Nongovernmental Organisation (OJQ), registered as such at the Ministry of Public Administration of the Republic of Kosovo. In this case, the Regional Development Ministry, not only does it not have legal authorisation, but it is explicitly prohibited with legislation in force that the spending of the state budget be done in the way it has been handled in this process, and, above all, to sign public fund sharing agreements with a non-governmental organisation, without public declaration and not subject to the criteria for which the state has proclaimed as an interest with that statement. ”, MEP Musliu-Sho said.

Furthermore, PDK deputy has said that this “Memorandum Co-operation”, by the two government ministers Kurti, has been initiated and treated under the International Agreement Law, in order to be treated as “Agreement for Inter-institution Co-operation”.

According to her, such agreements can only connect ministries to foreign states or international organisations, and only if such agreements do not contain mandatory obligations for Government.

But just on this basis, Mrs. Donika Grovalla ão Schwarz, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspore, on August 06th 2021, has signed the letter through which Mr. Damka iu has given consent to signing this Memorandum of Co-operation. So this memorandum is signed in full opposition to the law, for two main reasons: First, it has been signed with an NGO that is not subject to international relations. Second, the same contains financial obligations of over 1m euros to the government from the Kosovo taxpayers' budget.”, MP Ariana Musliu-Sashi has said.

Furthermore, she has said that in addition to opposing the law, its consequences are concrete because for its implementation, Minister Damka has made the decision to separate 347 thousand euros from the ministry's budget code, from the “Central Administration” programme in the “expenditure category. Subventions and Transfer” for this memorandum, making this thing illegal and contrary to the budget law and the law on public finance management.

“Such budget spending is not presumption or sharing with the budget law for 2022, nor is it possible to realise if it exceeds 5 %s of the ministry's budget. So not only has there not been a government decision, but not even a prior approval of the finance minister. On this basis, our based and controversial allegations make us realize that we are dealing with an illegal pact, from the procedure followed in the case of signing this memorandum, to the financial misuse of the Kosovo taxpayers' budget. Both of these ministers have done this with intent and interaction.”, MEP Musliu-Sshi said.

Lawyer Faton Fetah, meanwhile, argued that claims on the lawlessness of this agreement rely on four legal views.

The first “, this agreement is contrary to the law on international agreements. Second, it is contrary to the law on public finance management and accountability. Third, it is contrary to the law on budgetary and fourth divisions, with legislation managing and spending government subsidies. ”, attorney Fetah said.

For all these four legal views, lawyer Fetah has provided detailed explanations of the lawlessness of this memorandum.

In this case, the Democratic Party of Kosovo has called on the investigative institutions to deal urgently with the investigation of the case. /Periscopi