Svetozar Marovic informed the party on his resignation and it was announced at the session of the DPS Budva municipal committee on Monday. The session was attended by the president of DPS Milo Djukanovic and his deputy Dusko Markovic.
According to unofficial information of Pobjeda newspaper, as the reason for his resignation, Marovic said he wanted to remove the collective responsibility from DPS. Marovic’s resignation came just hours after Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic said that DPS admitted no guilt for developments in Budva during his visit to the city on Monday.
Djukanovic said that DPS admitted no guilt, because the pledge agreement was an individual act. “Any liability, in the spirit of our criminal legislation, is individual and it cannot be collective, either in terms of the party or other forms of organisation”, he added.
“All those who think this is a decisive moment to settle a score with DPS must keep this in mind. They will have to settle a score with DPS at the elections. We are ready to responsibly deal with the problem that occurred and to get out of this problem by offering a new perspective to this city. I am absolutely sure that we have the power to offer a realistic projection of the future development of the city and I am sure we have people who will be worthy of the Budva people’s attention in the upcoming elections”, Djukanovic said.
Marovic was arrested on 17 December on suspicion of participating in illegal activities costing municipal budget tens of millions of euros.
He made a pledge bargain with the Special Prosecutor’s Office in five Budva affairs and signed it on 17 May with the prosecutor Sasa Cadjenovic.
According to the plea bargain, he is to spend a year and ten months in prison and to pay €50,000 for embezzlements related to contract on construction of the lower boulevard in Budva, the road in the Krapina village, construction of waste water collector in Becici, as well as in cases Property Investment and Copyright. This plea agreement was submitted yesterday to the High Court for a decision.
Thus, Marovic signed two plea bargains in total and agreed to spend four years and three months in prison and to pay €1,100,000.
Marovic’s arrest was often a reason for the opposition parties to accuse DPS. They were trying to associate plea bargains that the Prosecutor’s Office made with Budva officials with the policy of DPS. DPS rejected all the allegations, stating that everyone is equal before the law and that everyone should be held accountable for their behaviour.
