The Pensioners’ Association Sloga from Pljevlja is urging state officials to disband the Pensioners’ Union of Montenegro and initiate an investigation into its activities amid allegations of various illegal actions.

They are demanding that the Pension and Disability Insurance Fund (PIO) ensure equal treatment for all pensioners, discontinuing any favoritism.

Founded in 2022, the Sloga Association comprises former members of the Pensioners’ Association who were dissatisfied with the management. Currently, it has approximately 450 members.

The President of the Pensioners’ Association Sloga, Čabarkapa, asserts that the Pljevlja Pensioners’ Association has unlawfully taken possession of communal spaces, which include the Pensioners’ Club, administrative offices, and a rented apartment.

“Isn’t it ridiculous that this Association holds so much space while ours pays 220 euros in rent? We have minimal income from membership fees, with the remainder being provided by member donations. It’s forgotten that these spaces were established by pensioners from Pljevlja, yet many no longer have access. This property belongs to all of us, as for years, we have been denied use of funds from our membership fees for the Pensioners’ Association due to inertia. This practice has only recently ceased, as new pensioners joining our Association now receive an application form. However, there is still discrimination because application forms are not required from other Pensioners’ Associations affiliated with the Alliance. In short, our Association has been overlooked, disenfranchised, and ignored,” stated Čabarkapa to “Vijesti.”

She highlighted their unsuccessful attempts to rectify their situation through the Municipality and the Pension Fund.

“We would welcome adequate business space, but all our requests have been fruitless. Regrettably, the attitude from the Municipality and other agencies has been extremely unhelpful, seemingly with someone obstructing our efforts. There are numerous office and business spaces in Pljevlja, often provided at minimal cost, yet we cannot secure even a basic one of about fifteen square meters. The most disheartening aspect is that we can’t even obtain the pension space owed to us, despite some being available,” expressed Čabarkapa.

She believes that the financial condition of the most vulnerable pensioners could be improved if the approximately one million euros received annually from membership fees and other donations were managed wisely.

“One significant contributor to this predicament is the existence of the Union of Pensioners’ Associations of Montenegro. Much of the aforementioned funds are allocated to compensating the Union president and administration, which is overly bloated, along with other perks, all at the expense of our most vulnerable members,” indicated the head of the Union of Pensioners’ Associations, Stoja Čabarkapa.

Moreover, she stated that their Association is barred from joining the Pensioners’ Union of Montenegro.

Čabarkapa and fellow Association members also mentioned that the 600,000 euros allocated for the construction of apartments by the Pljevlja Pensioners’ Association warrants scrutiny.

“The municipality provided the land for free and exempted the developer from utility fees. In early 2018, 300,000 euros were deposited into the Pljevlja Pensioners’ Association account, with 175,000 directed to the Solidarity Housing Fund. A portion of the funds later vanished in Atlas Bank. The Pension and Retirement Fund has not addressed our requests, despite multiple appeals,” highlighted Čabarkapa.

“We demand an audit of the Pensioners’ Association’s operations and propose its disbandment based on the aforementioned issues. We insist on monitoring the finances of municipal Pensioners’ Associations, particularly in Pljevlja,” stated Čabarkapa.

She also mentioned that she had filed criminal charges against the Pljevlja Pensioners’ Association concerning these irregularities, but some were dismissed by the prosecutor’s office.

The President of the Pljevlja Pensioners’ Association, Vukadin Damjanović, declined to comment on the allegations raised by Sloga members regarding their association’s operations.

“They should focus on their own Association, not the Pljevlja Pensioners’ Association,” remarked Damjanović.

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