The meeting held today in the premises of the Agency was attended by the President of the APC Council, Mr Pavle Ćupić, the Council members Ms Dragana Šuković, Ms Aleksandra Vukašinović and Ms Slavica Mirković, the APC staff, as well as representatives of non-governmental organisations: the Centre for Civic Education (CGO), the Centre for Monitoring and Research (CeMI), the Network for the Affirmation of the NGO Sector (MANS), the Centre for Civil Liberties (CEGAS), the Centre for the Development of Non-Governmental Organisations (CRNVO), the Centre for Democratic Transition (CDT), Civic Alliance (GA) and KOD organisation.

Acknowledging that it is necessary to strengthen and concretise relations with the civil sector, the representatives of the APC Council have proposed to jointly design cooperation models so that the expertise possessed by non-governmental organisations in various areas of the Agency’s activities is used in the most effective manner possible, with a view to improving anti-corruption policies and mechanisms for the prevention of corruption.

It was proposed to list all the issues that the non-governmental sector identified in the work of the Agency in the previous period, as well as all the cases initiated by non-governmental organisations before the Agency, which have still not been resolved. It was announced that special, thematic meetings of the APC Council would be organised on issues burdening the work of the civil sector.

Representatives of the civil sector drew the attention of the APC Council to a number of unresolved cases weighing on the Montenegrin public and expressed their expectation that the APC management and the Council would be firmly determined to address these problems. They particularly stressed the need for the Agency to react in a timely manner in respect of proceedings related to the current election process, especially in cases concerning free public transport by city buses in the Capital City and the officials’ campaign. They suggested to overcome the limitations of the current legal framework by strengthening inter-institutional cooperation and they made specific proposals regarding the amendments to the legislation falling within the jurisdiction of the Agency.

The Agency for the Prevention of Corruption will continue its dedicated work on strengthening the cooperation with all relevant social stakeholders, including non-governmental organisations, with the aim of restoring trust in the work of the institution and continuously improving integrity, transparency and responsibility in society.