Montenegro’s parliament late Monday adopted constitutional amendments requiring integrity checks for prime ministerial candidates and cabinet members before they are nominated, in a move aimed at identifying potential conflicts of interest.
The proposal was backed by the ruling coalition, independent MPs and one MP from the opposition European Alliance (ES). The Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), Montenegro’s largest opposition party, and the pro-Serb Democratic People’s Party were not present for the vote.
The amendment provides for integrity checks to identify potential conflicts of interest among candidates for prime minister and ministerial posts and allows for steps to be taken to eliminate those risks in accordance with the law.
On Monday, the government accepted a demand by independent MPs, the ES and the United Reform Action party for an additional constitutional amendment requiring additional integrity-check legislation to specify in detail how integrity checks will be conducted.
Momo Koprivica, Deputy Prime Minister for the Political System, Justice and Anti-Corruption, said the aim was to identify potential conflicts of interest and take measures to address them.
“In other words, anyone who wants to run the state cannot do business with the state,” Koprivica said.
He stressed that the proposed rules would not prevent business owners from becoming a minister or prime minister, but would require them to choose between holding public office and continuing to do business with the state.
“You cannot do both,” he said.
The DPS opposed both the government’s original proposal and the revised version, stating it would not support constitutional changes made for the sake of political deals, particularly when the stated objectives could be achieved through legislation.
The DPS said it was ready for serious dialogue on improving integrity checks, but argued that the issue should be regulated by law, with checks conducted before elections and with clear criteria and legal safeguards in place.
It said that conducting checks after voters had expressed their support for electoral lists and candidates could open the door to subsequently challenging their integrity and the political will of voters.
The constitutional amendments are considered an important step towards meeting Montenegro’s obligations under Chapter 23 of its EU accession negotiations, which covers the judiciary and fundamental rights, including the rule of law, the fight against corruption and the accountability of public officials.
Following the provisional closure of three more chapters at an intergovernmental conference on October 12, 21 of the 33 negotiating chapters have been provisionally closed.
European officials have repeatedly stressed the importance of adopting the constitutional amendments as soon as possible to ensure Montenegro remains on track to provisionally close all EU accession negotiating chapters by the end of the year.