CGO: RTCG - Balvan on Montenegro's road to the EU

AUTHOR: M.J. GDNUS
The Center for Civic Education (CGE) indicates that the report of the European Commission (EC) for 2024, published during the week, precisely and unequivocally confirms that this kind of RTCG, along with the existing leadership, and especially the fact of multiple illegal elections of Boris Raonic as general director, is one of the logs on the European road of Montenegro. Legal chaos, the creators of which sit in the Council of RTCG, but also in some important positions in institutions, has not been seen in Montenegro until now, and it is good that it has finally been noted in Brussels.
The illegality and non-transparency of the work of RTCG, along with political swimming downstream with the ruling structures, which need exactly such RTCG, and not a public service that critically positions issues, limits the objective and impartial information of citizens. This reinforces the irresponsibility of decision makers who know that RTCG, which is financed by the money of all taxpayers, will not put their work under adequate scrutiny.
Through this report, the EC practically calls on the competent institutions to wake up and address the illegalities in RTCG, as well as to prosecute those who participated in such actions. Also, one of the three recommendations of the EC for Montenegro, when it comes to media freedom, refers exclusively to RTCG, that is, it is strongly recommended to protect RTCG from any form of inappropriate influence on editorial, institutional or financial independence, noting that it is necessary to fully respect the law and the highest standards of professional integrity and responsibility. This means that these inappropriate political influences and circumvention of laws and professional standards are now clearly recognized at the international level, and are continuously pointed out by the critically oriented public in Montenegro.
CGO reminds that for years we have witnessed the stunts performed by Raonic, the members of the RTCG Council, the RTCG legal department and his lawyers, all with the support of the authorities. The irony is that some of the current protectors of Raonic in the government, while they were in the opposition, promised that the RTCG would never be under the control of the government again!?
That is why legally binding court verdicts, as well as the opinion of the ASK, are valuable, because they try to set certain limits in the mockery of rights and citizens by interest-related circles that, through their actions, collapse the legal and institutional order instead of creating an environment in which laws would be respected and unhindered distribution of justice.
For now, when it comes to Raonic and RTCG, personal and party interests are undermining the legal order, but also challenging EU institutions and member states, who seem to care more about Montenegro being part of the EU than the decision makers in Montenegro.
CGO remains of the position that despite the fact that the Law on National Public Broadcaster RTCG was fraudulently drafted at the last hour, Raonic cannot be the head of RTCG. After all, the final court verdicts made even those changes to the law meaningless and made it clear that Raonic, despite all his manipulations and those of his accomplices from the authorities, even today does not have the conditions to perform the function to which he was enthroned, according to the press release from that NGO.