The “Čelebić City” company has announced that it is highly unlikely to renew its lease agreement with the state for the facility located in Donja Gorica, which currently accommodates approximately 140 students.

According to the company’s director, Milena Brajović, in an interview with “Vijesti”, they proposed terms to the state for a sale of the building. However, she indicated that continuing the lease, particularly at the current rental rate, is not in their best interest. Nonetheless, she assured that students’ well-being would not be compromised, despite the adverse circumstances they are already facing.

Conversely, executives from the government claim that they have extended an offer to the company for the continuation of the lease but have yet to receive a formal reply…

The lease contract is nearing its expiration; it was initially signed in November for a three-month term, although it is generally understood that the holiday season does not count towards this period…

Last November, the Government of Montenegro granted consent for the lease of a facility exceeding 4,200 square meters in Donja Gorica, owned by “Čelebić”, for use as a student dormitory.

Prior to this, on October 21, a purchase contract valued at 6.3 million euros was signed for the facility, but it was mutually terminated following a warning from the Office of the Protector of Property and Legal Interests to the Minister of Education, Science and Innovation, Andjela Jakšić Stojanović regarding the inapplicability of the Public Procurement Law in the purchase of facilities for state purposes. The Office responded to the Ministry of Education after Jakšić Stojanović sought their opinion on the contract with “Čelebić City”.

Purchase Proposal Submitted

Brajović informed “Vijesti” that they have submitted a formal purchase offer to the Property Administration.

“Apart from the Voco hotel, Čelebić City also owns the Verde hotel. We proposed it through a public tender for the needs of the Public Institution ‘Dom učenika i studenata’ Podgorica, as it satisfied all necessary conditions. After completing the procedure, we signed a purchase agreement and transferred the facility to the Public Institution’s management. Subsequently, the contract was annulled with the explanation that a new purchase procedure would be initiated by the State Property Administration. We submitted an official purchase offer, and the process is ongoing. Given that the facility has been occupied and utilized, we entered into a lease agreement for a three-month period at prices below market value,” Brajović stated.

She emphasized that if the State Property Administration fails to proceed with acquiring the facility for any reason, they would not be interested in extending the lease, particularly under the previous conditions.

As a socially responsible entity, we will exhaust all efforts to ensure that the students are not endangered, despite the losses we are currently incurring.

The State Property Administration, which was assigned the task of finding a permanent student accommodation solution during the lease period, has not responded to inquiries from the editorial team for nearly a month, despite several urgent requests.

A source from the Government of Montenegro has mentioned that the state has proposed to “Čelebić City” to continue their cooperative arrangement through a lease, but they are still waiting for a response. The source also noted that no alternative properties have been located for purchase or lease that can accommodate students’ needs.

The Ministry of Education, Science, and Innovation (MESI) stated they have yet to receive any official updates concerning student accommodation.

“We hope that the agency responsible for these matters will finalize the process soon, ultimately benefiting the students,” the department led by Anđela Jakšić Stojanović responded.

Background

In mid-November, during a teleconference, the Government of Montenegro consented to lease a facility in Donja Gorica from “Čelebić” for student dormitory purposes.

It was mentioned at a government session that the monthly rental fee proposed was six euros per square meter, amounting to 30,564 euros including value-added tax (VAT) per month, for a total of 61,129 euros including VAT over the initially planned two months.

After a lengthy bidding process, in October, Minister Jakšić Stojanović and Brajović signed a contract formalizing the purchase of the 4,200-square-meter facility in Donja Gorica for student use, valued at 6.3 million euros.

“Vijesti” had previously reported that on the same day, Jakšić Stojanović contacted the Office of the Protector of Property and Legal Interests seeking their opinion.

“Among other points, the ombudsman asserted that the acquisition of the property should be conducted by the agency responsible for state property and that this transaction fell outside the scope of the Public Procurement Law, advising the Ministry of Education to terminate the agreement,” a source had told “Vijesti” previously.

Two weeks later, on November 5, the contract was annulled by mutual consent, with “Čelebić” waiving its right to appeal.

Article 14 of the Public Procurement Law stipulates that this regulation does not apply to “the acquisition or lease of land, buildings, or other immovable properties or related rights.”

According to data from the electronic public procurement system (CeJN), the estimated value of the public procurement announced last summer was nearly three million euros, with the note that this amount was for 2024.

“…Should the property’s value exceed the subject value due to size and capacity, the bid will not be rejected but will be forwarded to the Government and the Ministry of Finance for additional decision-making regarding possible obligations to allocate extra funds in upcoming budget years,” states the public procurement description from July 19th.

Only the “Čelebić” company, owned by Tomislav Čelebić, who, alongside former head of state Milo Đukanović and professor Dragan K. Vukčević, co-founded the private University of Donja Gorica, situated nearby the proposed lease facility.

The previously terminated contract with “Čelebić City” drew criticism from civic activists Aleksandar Dragićević and “Fidelity consulting” on their social media platforms. Dragićević argued that “the Government, as a collective body, is not subject to criminal liability and thus found a loophole to benefit someone without accountability,” while “Fidelity consulting” asserted that “a square meter in the Donja Gorica student dormitory would cost over 2,300 euros.”

Leader of the Movement for Change (PzP) Nebojsa Medojevic revealed in December that he provided a statement to the Special Police Department (SPO) detailing “all his insights regarding the corrupt actions of the Government in the proposed sale of the hotel from ‘Čelebić City’.”

In mid-February of last year, the government reviewed information provided by the Ministry of Education, Science, and Innovation about insufficient dormitory space for students in Podgorica, which led to a green light in mid-April for renting or buying the facility.

This proposal was previously announced as part of recommendations from the Interdepartmental Working Group, which, in addition to the MPNI, included representatives from the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism, and State Property, as well as the Administration for Capital Projects and the State Property Administration.

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