MINT and Dogana make illegal oil control deals (DOKUMENT)

The agreement signed between MINT and Dogan, despite being presented as the initiative to guarantee oil quality through laboratory tests, has no solid legal basis. It conflicts with the Oil and Fuel Product Trade Law NR.08/L-018, The Law for Inspectorate and Administrative Guide (MTI) No. 01/2017Who's still in power.

Under current laws, market supervision and the taking of samples make the Market Inspectorate in co-operation with authorised and accredited troops for the evaluation of conformity. Customs, by law, is not authorised to conduct quality tests, but only to collect taxes and exercise customs control at the border.

According to legal standards, changes to legislation must precede any new co-operation agreement. In concrete case, MINT has first signed the agreement with Dogan and has only subsequently launched procedures for amending the Derivet Law and Administration Guides. This procedural setback tells of a hurry of MINT that without clearly clarifying the legal basis for agreement to be reached.

According to Article 1 of the deal, which has been secured by Periscope, its objective is to enable the verification of the quality of fuels for the needs of the Market Inspectorate through the Kosovo Customs lab. However, the agreement does not include any authorisation of legal competencies, it is simply an act of non-binding legal co-operation in terms of implementing quality control.

MINT's inspector has launched the process of taking samples through the selling points of derivatives, without respecting the legal criteria. According to Article 22, Point 8 of Administrative Guide 012017, taking samples is allowed only by authorized and accredited troops, and tests must be conducted in a standard-censored labs. ISO 17025.

Contrary to this, the labs that have been used, including Kosovalab, have not had valid authorization, as their permit has expired since December last year. Since then, MINT has not authorized any laboratory for such tests, leaving this critical link of quality control empty. While the Department of Industry has recommended that Kosovo Labus, MINT, continue authorisation, Minister Roseta Hajdari has essentially blocked this process from December 2024. MINT is in danger of being punished because of failing to continue authorisation, because the owners of the laboratory have already launched legal procedures.

Arben Zeneli from Kosovalyb for Periscope has been telling in detail since January this year, activities by Minister Roseta Hajdari have been suspended.

The “actually somewhere on January 18th or 21st, we've made the decision by Prime Minister Roseta Hajdari to suspend activity with a rationale that actually has a procedure of a criminal outcry by its officials within the ministry, and from that moment we've received no confirmation. Authorisation we don't, name”, he said.

Zenelli told Periscope they filed charges against MINT.

“We have filed a lawsuit at the Commercial Court where we won the first degree as well as the second degree and still have not reflected”, he said.

He has considered it an administrative conflict in silence.

“De facto So we're named but we're not controlling quality through our lab. The lab is competent with professional promotions, and it's completely classified and complete with staff and equipment of all. However, it is an administrative silence”, he said.

Zeneli has shown that they have no competence for taking over the market Inspectorate.

The “actually with the administrative directive that has been in force that it (Roseza Hajdari) has made agreement with Dogan. Article 3 points 2 is that the Market Inspectorate has no professional competence for taking the sample to be sent to Kosovo Customs because it is not accredited and that is a legal violation. Officials from the Ministry of Industry, Intervention, and Trade (MINT), the Inspectorate does not have the right to access the sample because they are not accredited in the first place. And the state should only play the role of market supervisors, not taking samples and inspections. Inspection should be made third parties. With the new administrative directive, they have no legal basis where any action they are trying to do is anti-legal”, he said.

MINT's current actions seriously endanger the health of citizens. Poor quality derivatives affect environmental pollution and damage motor vehicles. Moreover, the lack of internal control of the market casts large shadows of doubt on the safety and quality of the fuels citizens use.

Internal market control is MINT's direct legal responsibility, while Customs exercises the role at the border. In the absence of internal control and law enforcement, the consumer remains vulnerable and exposed to potentially harmful products.

Periscop has officially contacted MINT to get clarification on this situation, including the lack of internal control and nature of the agreement with Dogan, but has so far received no response.

From the agreement between MINT and Customs, all laboratory tests will be after no cents, despite businesses that circulate millions of euros. Article 2 of this agreement, point 1, confirms that Kosovo's “Dogana will conduct laboratory tests for the needs of MINT market inspectorate in order to verify the quality of oil fuel quality from the day of signing this” agreement.

Consequently, oil trading companies will not spend a cent on samples testing, because the state will, or MINT, take care of it.

But Article 3 point 2, explains that fuel testing capacity is limited indicating that there may be a lack of testing.

“Testing and verifying the samples of liquid oil fuels through the DK0 laboratory is limited to the capacity surplus that Kosovo Customs can currently offer with the human resources available”. /Periscope