
The Mayor of Paracin, a municipality headed by the opposition Sasa Paunovic told N1 on Friday that the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) was behind the recent arrest of the municipal employees, adding the reason was that the party did not hold power in the municipality.
Special Anti-Corruption Department of the Higher Public Prosecutors’ Office in the town of Kraljevo, the administrative centre of the central Raska District, has recently ordered the arrest of the officials from the municipality urban, finance, and some other administrative offices, as well as a Red Cross employee.
“SNS ordered an opinion poll in May, so did we, and it shows they stand no chance of winning power in the town unless they discredit us in the media they control or eliminate us by constructing showcases on minor offences,” Paunovic said.
He added that the arrested people were guilty “because a man who works for one municipal service and is paid from the municipal budget has worked for other, also municipal, service. He did that job indeed and received pay for working for the other service where it was needed."
Punovic said the officials who had to struggle to find workers during the employment ban in the public sector were accused of serious crimes.
“It wasn’t completely in line with the administrative rules, but no one stole anything,” Paunovic aid.