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Charges Filed Against Ten Individuals for Abuse of Power and Negligence at REK Bitola

The Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office in Bitola has filed charges against a total of ten individuals regarding alleged abuses and negligent actions related to public procurement procedures at AD ESM-Branch REK Bitola. The charges stem from actions that reportedly caused significant financial damage to the state budget.

Seven individuals face charges of Abuse of Official Position and Authority, while three officials from the Public Procurement Bureau are accused of Negligent Performance of Duty. The alleged offenses resulted in damages amounting to 178,370,319 denars to the Budget of AD ESM-Branch REK Bitola.

Three of those accused of abuse are officials who were members of the Expert Commission responsible for evaluating bids in a public procurement for overburden excavation. These officials are accused of unlawfully eliminating a company’s bid despite evidence that it met the tender requirements.

The Public Procurement Commission, allegedly disregarding legal provisions, proceeded with an electronic auction involving only two other companies that had initially offered higher prices. The director of REK Bitola is accused of accepting the selection proposal, which led to a contract with RUD-KOP import-export DOOEL Bitola for 708,000,000 denars, including VAT. The director is further accused of unlawfully increasing the contract value by 20%, or 120,000,000 denars, through an annex without conducting a cost-effectiveness analysis or securing the necessary funds.

The officials from the Public Procurement Bureau are accused of failing to identify the illegal rejection of the company’s bid during their review of the documentation. They allegedly instructed the contracting authority to continue the procedure and conclude the contract.

The Public Prosecutor has proposed the confiscation of the illegally obtained property benefit of 178,370,319 denars paid to DPTU RUD-KOP import-export DOOEL Bitola. These funds are currently frozen in an account under a temporary measure to secure the property until a court verdict is reached.