Source: „Politika"
It is absurd that the public is now already for days awaiting when the information about operations of the state companies shall appear on Government's web-site, says Rodoljub Sabic.
Data regarding salaries of public companies and governmental agencies managers' salaries in Serbia have been published on the web-site of the Government of Serbia. Companies and agencies had an official deadline until March 31st to deliver data about management earnings to the Government, and then to publish them. That deadline has been determined by the Government of Serbia. We spoke with Rodoljub Sabic, Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection about why those deadlines haven't been observed, and why the lists are not complete.
Why doesn't this list quote the salary of the managers from Dunav osiguranje (insurance company), of the Central Securities Register, Komercijalna banka (Commercial Bank), Privatization Agency and some other state institutions?
The number of public companies and other legal entities with majority state capital or with public authorizations is big, approximately around 80. The Government didn't state if it has requested data from everybody, that is, from whom it has requested data and under which criteria. In any case, I don't have any understanding for mystification of the whole situation. It is absurd that our public is for days already expecting when and what of the information regarding operations of the authorities shall appear on the "Government website". It is absurd, because already for four years, since we have the Law on Free Access to Information, it should be beyond dispute that those information are a completely legitimate subject of public interest, and that each of those subjects is obliged to give them on every journalists' or citizens' request. Some of them are, even more than that, according to the law obliged to publish them in regular and updated manner in their Operations Information Booklets on their web-sites. And those who do not have such a formal obligation, have the moral one.
Why there are no data on how those companies operate, do they have losses and what is their dividend?
It isn't known from whom and what specific information the Government requested. However, in principle, all information regarding operations of the public companies and other subjects, the founder or owner of which is the state, represent an information of public importance. So, not just the salaries, but also information about costs of representation, sponsorship, donations and all the other spending of public resources. Data on potential losses or dividends, should be there also, without any doubt.
It would be a useful data to know how much money those companies bring into the budget of Serbia, was that requested from them?
Also the data regarding if and how much the state companies contribute to their owner represent an information of primary public importance. I don't know if, on this occasion the Government requested that from them, but in the end this is not important. I repeat, it is high time for us to finally make indisputable that those information must be available to the public at any given moment.
