For the first time in Kosovo, over 2 thousand doctors and professors are obliged to declare their assets to the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (APC). Within the one-month deadline, which will end on March 12, 1500 doctors from regional hospitals and the University Clinical Center of Kosovo (UCCK), including 800 professors from seven public universities, are obliged to fulfill this legal obligation.
This is what the director of the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, Yll Buleshkaj, says, as he points out that the punishments for these two categories in the event that they do not respond to the call to declare their assets, range from monetary fines to effective imprisonment.
In an interview for KosovaPress, Buleshkaj mentions that last year they submitted 90 criminal charges for non-declaration of wealth by public officials. He adds that this year it is expected that the number of those who are obliged to declare their assets will reach nearly 13 thousand, two thousand more than the previous year.
Buleshkaj told KosovaPress emphasizes that the initial punishments for those who do not declare the assets within the specified period are of two levels, while adding that the first punishment is administrative, for which a mandatory fine in the amount of 30 percent of their salary will be imposed. He further said that the other punishment includes criminal charges, for which he says that the punishment can vary from three to five years in effective prison, depending on the violations.
Among other things, the director of the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, Yll Buleshkaj, said that in 2023 they submitted about 180 criminal charges less than in 2022 for not declaring assets. He hopes that this positive trend will continue and that this number will not increase. Meanwhile, Buleshkaj points out that from four thousand what was the number of public officials in 2022 who were obliged to declare their assets, this number last year reached 11 thousand, while adding that this year it will go below 13 thousand.
In the end, Buleshkaj calls on all doctors and professors who are obliged to declare their assets, to respond positively to the law within the specified period, so that there are no penalties.
