B92 looks into abuse of office in state-run company

More than half a billion dinars from Kolubara Coal Mine have been donated to various associations over the past few years even though the mine suffered losses. B92 program Insajder has revealed abuse of office in the company which is a part of the Serbian Power Company (EPS) and which has not been monitored. B92 looks into abuse of office in state-run company Donations and sponsorships were only one of the ways to extract money from the mine and the proportions of abuse show that this is actually one of the biggest thefts of the state property. Appropriations for donations and sponsorships began to rise drastically after 2004 when a director was appointed by then ruling Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS). In the period when the company had almost RSD 10bn worth of loss, it appropriated more than RSD 140mn for various associations. Among the recipients of the biggest donations that year was far-right organization Srpski Sabor Dveri, which received RSD 4.2mn. Vladan Jovicic was Kolubara Coal Mine director at the time. “Only the company’s assembly can make a decision on such amount. In 2008 and I think until March 2009 that [assembly chairman] was Dragan Tomic,” he stressed. Tomic was Kolubara Coal Mine director since 2004 and he became the company assembly chairman in 2007. He appropriated significant funds for the church and religious activities. The mine financed construction of a parish house in Lazarevac, one of the workers was given EUR 1,000 to visit Christ's tomb in Bethlehem and the state-run company also paid Sopocani monastery's electricity bill worth RSD 2.3mn. It is unclear based on which criteria donations were granted and why all this was happening at the time when the company had significant losses. Tomic refused to speak to B92. Jovicic said he did not see anything unusual about the donations. “I don't think it was abuse. I think that Kolubara should be an initiator of sustainable development and to be known not only for being a direct link through the price of the electric energy bill, but it should also help development of sports and culture and education and eveything which ultimately is tradition,“ he stressed. However, list of donations does not end here. Kolubara Coal Mine several times appropriated several hundreds of thousands of dinars for organization of domestic and European bridge tournaments, RSD 100,000 was given to Miss Yu company for organization of beauty pageants, RSD 150,000 was paid for an automatic clay pigeon thrower for the Barosevac local community near Lazarevac. The new Insajder episode will be aired on Monday at 22:00 CET.

B92 looks into abuse of office in state-run company

Donations and sponsorships were only one of the ways to extract money from the mine and the proportions of abuse show that this is actually one of the biggest thefts of the state property.

Appropriations for donations and sponsorships began to rise drastically after 2004 when a director was appointed by then ruling Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS).

In the period when the company had almost RSD 10bn worth of loss, it appropriated more than RSD 140mn for various associations. Among the recipients of the biggest donations that year was far-right organization Srpski Sabor Dveri, which received RSD 4.2mn.

Vladan Jovičić was Kolubara Coal Mine director at the time.

“Only the company’s assembly can make a decision on such amount. In 2008 and I think until March 2009 that [assembly chairman] was Dragan Tomić,” he stressed.

Tomić was Kolubara Coal Mine director since 2004 and he became the company assembly chairman in 2007. He appropriated significant funds for the church and religious activities.

The mine financed construction of a parish house in Lazarevac, one of the workers was given EUR 1,000 to visit Christ's tomb in Bethlehem and the state-run company also paid Sopoćani monastery's electricity bill worth RSD 2.3mn.

It is unclear based on which criteria donations were granted and why all this was happening at the time when the company had significant losses. Tomić refused to speak to B92. Jovičić said he did not see anything unusual about the donations.

“I don't think it was abuse. I think that Kolubara should be an initiator of sustainable development and to be known not only for being a direct link through the price of the electric energy bill, but it should also help development of sports and culture and education and eveything which ultimately is tradition,“ he stressed.

However, list of donations does not end here. Kolubara Coal Mine several times appropriated several hundreds of thousands of dinars for organization of domestic and European bridge tournaments, RSD 100,000 was given to Miss Yu company for organization of beauty pageants, RSD 150,000 was paid for an automatic clay pigeon thrower for the Baroševac local community near Lazarevac.

The new Insajder episode will be aired on Monday at 22:00 CET.