Ministers charged with misdemeanor

Belgrade, Feb. 22, 2010 (Serbia Today) – Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic talked last Friday with all the government ministers against whom charges have been filed by the State Audit Institution.

In a written statement, the Prime Minister said that he is informed about the preparation of documentation in various ministries concerning the irregularities and that this material will be presented in court. He said that after conducting an audit control procedure for the 2008 budget the State Audit Institution filed misdemeanor charges against those suspected of irregularities and it is up to the courts as independent bodies to determine the validity of these allegations. The government will take all necessary steps in the future to prevent such irregularities. I would like to state once more that it is extremely important for Serbia that the State Audit Institution has presented its first report and that state spending transparency has been established, said Cvetkovic.
Nevertheless, it is expected that most of the ministers will be punished only with the monetary fines which could be as low as 8 US Dollars and no higher than 700 US Dollars. It also not expected that any of them will be called to answer for their wrongdoings in front of their party members. Ministers that were charged are Slobodan Milosavljević, Goran Bogdanović, Žarko Obradovića, Tomica Milosavljević,, Nebojša Bradić, Saša Dragin, and Oliver Dulić.