Relatives of Zdenka Popović and Maida Gorčević Hired at EKIP — One Received a Housing Loan Within a Year

An investigation by the Montenegrin newspaper Vijesti has revealed that Milica Popović, the daughter-in-law of senior Democrats official Zdenka Popović, and Ilma Haverić, the sister of European Affairs Minister Maida Gorčević, were hired last year at the Agency for Electronic Communications and Postal Services (EKIP).

According to Vijesti, Popović was hired in November through a competition as a human-resources specialist, while Haverić was hired in September, without a competition, as a market-analysis specialist. According to the newspaper, Popović received a housing loan from the Agency less than a year after her hiring. Both could soon advance to senior-specialist positions thanks to a new job systematization approved this week by the EKIP Council, Vijesti writes.

The Agency did not answer the newspaper’s specific questions about these hires. Zdenka Popović has denied any influence over her daughter-in-law’s hiring, while Minister Gorčević did not answer journalists’ calls. EKIP says its employee housing-loan program has existed since 2003 and that many employees have benefited from it over the years.

In the background of this development, the EKIP Council dismissed executive director Marija Konjević in July; the Agency’s current director is Elvis Babačić.