The Pec municipality disappointed with budgetary divisions, say municipalities not governed by LVV

The Pec municipality is considering it unfair to share the 2024 budget envisioned by the Government of Kosovo with the reason that budgetary division is taking place on party grounds.

While, compared to last years' budget sharing, this municipality has benefited larger sums than it is now in leading the central level Vetevendosje movement.

The director for Board and Finance in Pec, Jeton Abazaj in an interview for kp, points out that the budget sharing relative to other municipalities is only a symbolic amount and not enough.

Abazaj says the budget division for municipalities should have been distributed proportionally. According to him, this has not happened because Peja as a municipality is not governed by the Vetevendosje Movement, and therefore the budget is less divided.

“I think it's a non-memberial budget, compared to the municipalities of the Republic of Kosovo, there are municipalities not why I envy why I am the Komuna Kamenica has received more budgets, but at least it had to, since there is no other possibility of budget distribution to have proportional budgets. I believe that municipalities that are not governed by the Vetevendosje Movement are ignored. Since I say that, even someone may not believe in this, budget signs prove that otherwise, i.e. The budget that has passed on the first reading, what I have seen I testify that municipalities like Kamenica benefit millions, while municipalities like Peja, Gjakova and other municipalities that are not governed by the Vetevendosje movement receive, very symbolic sum”, Abazaj said.

Director for Finance Abazaj added that Peja is promised two new projects worth 400,000 euros, while other projects are repeated. According to Abbas, they do not account for new projects and that in 2024, there should be more budgets for this municipality.

He hopes that the law on fourth grant of municipalities will be passed and that way the budget will be divided according to the number of residents and other specifics.

There are several projects in financial value that have been repeated and I don't count them as new, projects that have been new to 200,000 euros that are new projects for the Pec municipality. Others have been in earlier times and budgeted, but there are projects such as the case of Rugova's road, we have had a bike path from Patricans to the fifth mile, has completely left the budget, in total we have two new projects promised by Kurti Government, worth about 400,000 euros. Every time the municipal budgets, as a medium-sized municipality are not enough, and I believe there's been more budgeting for our municipality. In cases where it is governed not by the LDK, the central level, we have received more budgets than it now, in the event it is governed by other parties, Peja has been budgeted more than it now. The government approves the law on local government financing that they have in the draft and table for how many years, there is determined that the municipality will benefit in granting four, with which it is divided into the number of residents and other specifics” said Abbasaj.

The Kosovo Assembly on Thursday has, in principle, adopted the Project budget for the 2024 year, worth 3 billion and 314m euros. At this session, opposition parties have criticised the Government for drafting this draft budget, which they think is of poverty and stagnation.

On the other hand, the prime minister, Albin Kurti, during the presentation of this project in the Assembly, has said before MPs that with the 2024 budget, there is a budget increase for municipalities where 742m euros are envisioned.