Report corruption!

# WHAT IS CORRUPTION:

- Definition: corruption (lat. corruptio) means bribery, self-interest, etc. That is, any abuse of an official, business, or social position, or influence that is aimed at acquiring personal gain or for the benefit of another: Article 2 of the Law on Prevention of Corruption Official Gazette of Montenegro No. 53/20 and 42/2107.  

# WHERE IT OCCURS:

- This is a “disease of the modern age”, a global socio-economic and social problem, and a problem of all countries individually, especially “transitional” countries: the causes are anthropological (human as an individual and group), socio-economic, political, legal, etc. What is needed are radical systemic reforms and the adoption of strict supranational and national regulations, and when it comes to our country, Montenegro, where the degree of corruption is very high, and as a candidate country for admission to the EU, it is necessary to make even more efforts, due to Negotiation Chapters 23 and 24 – “Judiciary and fundamental rights”.

# CONSEQUENCES:

- Enormous: it crashes and destroys the institutions of the system of the state and society, the system of values and moral norms, the ethical behavior of the individual citizen is reduced to a very low level, it enables the illegal and enormous enrichment of individuals and certain related groups and thus deepens and increases social differences among the population of the state, leaves far-reaching negative consequences on all spheres of society, especially the economy through its slowdown and even setback in growth rates and investments. It also causes reduced spending of public revenues - funds for: health, education, social and child protection, the pension system and ultimately the increase in the standard of living of citizens, as well as all other areas of life and work due to illegally appropriated public funds. The WORLD BANK estimate is that the damage caused by corruption ranges from 3-5% of GDP in developed countries, and 20-25% in underdeveloped and "transitional" countries, at the state level, through abuses in the use of public funds and resources.  

# WHAT IS THE INTEGRITY (ANTI-CORRUPTION) DEPARTMENT OF THE MINISTRY OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM AND HOW DOES IT ACT, HOW TO FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION:

- It is the newly formed Department in the Ministry, the task of which, in accordance with the regulations, is to fight corruption at all levels of employees, as well as all types of unethical and unprofessional behavior and to sanction them, at all levels as well as at different amounts: small, medium and high, or very high.

- It acts on reports of “Whistleblowers” (persons who submit reports) for corruption or any kind of unethical behavior of employees in the Ministry of Economic Development and Tourism.

- Who can report corruption (whistleblower): all employees who notice it, each individual or several of them, as well as every individual or group outside the institution, either as a citizen or a party before the Ministry in an administrative procedure, also legal entities or other institutions at the local or state level. Reporting corruption is not only a right but also an obligation for all of us, every employee...

- The Integrity Department receives and processes every report of corruption. It conducts an investigation to determine whether the report is genuine or fictitious, examines the accompanying documentation in the first phase, requests additional information if necessary, and decides on the relevance of the report. It may also engage in discussions with the involved parties, take written statements when necessary, in compliance with the Law on Confidentiality of Data. If the investigation reveals no evidence of corruption or other unethical behavior by the reported employee within the Ministry, the report is dismissed as unfounded. However, if elements of corrupt behavior are found during the process, the department issues an opinion with recommendations for further actions against the implicated individual. Subsequently, relevant initiatives or formal reports are forwarded to authorities (such as prosecutors, courts, inspections, APC, etc.) for further processing. The Integrity Department previously submits the information in written form to the Head of the Ministry of Economic Development and Tourism, i.e., the Minister, for review and approval of further procedures, as well as for the signature on a potential report to the relevant authorities previously listed for further processing.

The Integrity Department starts the procedure and initiates the investigation within eight days from the completion of the case (documentation), and the procedure is expected to be completed within 45 days, during which the whistleblower, i.e., the individual who submitted the report, will be informed about the actions taken based on the report.