Kurti, Photo: Private archive
The former Inspector General of the National Security Agency (ANB) Artan Kurti will return to that position tomorrow by the decision of the Government made at today’s telephone session, it was confirmed to “Vijesti” from several sources from the executive branch.
According to the same information, the Government dismissed Predrag Burić from that position with the same conclusion.
In the conclusion of the Government, in which Vijesti has insight, the executive power made that decision in order to implement the judgment of the Administrative Court, which in this particular case decided on the merits in a dispute with full jurisdiction, and annulled the decision on the dismissal of Kurti made on August 1, 2024.
The Government, in accordance with the judgment of the Administrative Court of Montenegro U. no. 5722/24 of November 21, 2024, stated that Kurti, starting from January 13, 2025, continues the mandate of inspector general in the National Security Agency.
The Government, acting according to the judgment of the Administrative Court of Montenegro U. no. 5722/24 of November 21, 2024, dismissed Predrag Burić from his duties.
At the same time, the Government instructed the Acting Director of the National Security Agency, Ivica Janović, to enable Kurti to perform his duties in accordance with the Law on the National Security Agency after obtaining permission to access secret data.
“The Acting Director of the National Security Agency is tasked to submit without delay to the Directorate for the Protection of Secret Data a request for obtaining permission to access secret data for Artan Kurti, the Inspector General of the National Security Agency,” it says in the conclusion.
The legal battle between the Government and Kurti has been going on since November 9, 2023, when the executive power dismissed the Inspector General of the ANB from his duties.
It was known that this would be one of the first moves of the Government of Milojko Spajić as early as October 31, 2023, when former Prime Minister Dritan Abazović handed over his duties in the Government building.
Kurti immediately initiated an administrative dispute, and at the same time the Government acted legally – at the end of December 2023, amendments to the Law on ANB were proposed and it was only a targeted amendment to the provision of Article 40 paragraph 2 that a person who has has at least five years of work experience in the security sector.
At the beginning of April 2024, the first of three judgments of the Administrative Court followed, which annulled the Government’s decision with the explanation that “the decision on dismissal should contain concrete and clear reasons” and sent the case back for a new procedure…
15 days later, despite the legal understanding of the Administrative Court, the executive authority again passes a decision on the dismissal of Kurti, but this time with the explanation that “the Government did not put faith in the success of the work and the performance of the tasks of Inspector General Artan Kurti, and accordingly a decision was made on his dismissal”.
Then, a new inspector general, Predrag Burić, was appointed to Kurti’s place.
This was followed by a new lawsuit by Kurti before the Administrative Court, while the Government, in its response to the lawsuit on May 28, 2024, in a memo signed by General Secretary Dragoljub Nikolić, stated that they requested and received information from the Ministry of Justice as to whether Artan Kurti is in criminal records.
An extract from the criminal record was submitted to the government from that department, and they stated in their response that Kurti, in addition to not having five years of experience in the security services, also does not meet the requirements stipulated in Article 40 paragraph 2 of the Law on the National Security Agency.
This is why the Agency for the Protection of Personal Data and Free Access to Information reacted, which in a decision dated August 15 prohibited the Ministry of Justice from providing the personal data of Artan Kurti from the criminal records…
On June 18, the Administrative Court issued a judgment on the merits, again annulling the Government’s decision in a dispute with full jurisdiction, without returning the case for retrial and decision.
For a month and a half, the Government did not comply with the ruling, but that’s why on August 1st, during two consecutive sessions, they first reinstated Kurti, then promptly dismissed Kurti, and made the opposite decisions for his successor Burić.
That was the reason for Kurti to sue the Government for the third time, and the Administrative Court again on the merits, i.e. in a full jurisdiction dispute, decided on November 21 last year that “there is no solution to the dismissal and that Kurti should continue his mandate”…
On the same day when the judgment was delivered, the Government initiated the procedure for amending the Law on ANB.
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Source: www.vijesti.me
