The high level of corruption in Kosovo is a direct consequence of the failure of laws and legal institutions to fight this phenomenon in practice. This institutional inefficiency derived from the lack of political will has created (a) an institutional overlap and (b) a weak justice system as has been shown in the recent report National Integrity System, published by KDI in October 2015. These findings have been supported by many local and regional actors in the regional conference organized by KDI in February 2016. Critics from the civil society are reluctant to believe that the political will can easily prevail in the fight against corruption. This is since according to the overall public perception, political leaders and public officials are listed as “the main perpetrators of corruption and other economic crimes”.

“This papers provides an overview of the institutional inability to fight corruption, policy alternatives to deal with such an issue and some references on the best alternative”. This policy analysis is a document which outlines the justification of choosing a particular policy option or a course of action to fight corruption more effectively” said Visar Sutaj, author of the paper.

“The commitment of political and institutional leaders to distance themselves from corruption remains declarative; their actions do not demonstrate practical commitment and a bold confrontation in the fight against corruption. All findings, research and measurements of the public opinion, political leaders and public officials are listed as “the main perpetrators of corruption and other economic crimes”. Moreover, the latest report by the U.S Department of State states that endemic corruption in the government and the private sector, and the lack of punishment for corruption offences is one of the most serious issues with regard to Human Rights in Kosovo during 2015, said Ismet Kryeziu, Excecutive Director at KDI.

Albulena Haxhiu, Member of the Assembly from VV political party, added that “corruption has laid its roots and has spread everywhere in institutions”. The U.S Department of State’s report is contradictory to the yesterday’s statements of the Prime Minister, who believes that corruption is only a matter of perception. This tells a lot about the Government’s frivolous approach towards this issue”. I also think that the legislative package that addresses the issue of corruption is incomplete. I support the option of establishing a separate department within the state prosecution, which would deal exclusively with corruption cases, and strengthened with a sufficient budget. Other mechanisms should be decimated.

While Sokol Havolli, from the Prime Minister’s Office, said that “in the context of this topic, the government has taken concrete actions, and has not allowed any corruptive affair or case, at least not to its knowledge”. Furthermore, he added that “the issue of fighting corruption should not be left as a burden of the political will, it should be driven by the Prosecution which is charged with this mandate. The political will must not interfere in the independent pillars such as in the justice system. While in terms of the budget, the government has made sure to approve 95% of the justice system’s requests for an increase of their budget. We are in support of the first proposed option that opts for a strong state prosecutor.

There is a saying that “the wolf seeks for fogs” and this seems to be the most convenient to the government, which has created mechanisms that have shared responsibilities, but have not brought any results in the fight against corruption. In principle, the existing laws should first be tested and implemented, and then verify if there are any deficiencies or a potential need to change these laws. “We support the strengthening of the mandated institutions by the Constitution to fight corruption” said Betim Musliu from the Kosovo Law Institute.

KDI calls on policymakers to simplify the existing institutional mechanisms in the fight against corruption, by breaking down the responsibilities of all anti-corruption institutions into one- the State Prosecutor’s Office which has exclusive competences to investigate and charge the alleged public officials of corruption, in cooperation with law enforcement institutions, including the police. This requires the removal of the competence of Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA), to investigate as well as the elimination of the President’s Council. The time has come for the prosecutors and judges to perform their duties as stipulated by the law, in the most transparent and independent manner, and apply the law against all corrupted public officials, whatever their position.  

 

This activity was funded by the European Union and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation Program in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).