Taking occassion by an article of the daily newspaper “Koha Ditore”, dated 11.03.2015, with the title “The deadline of the President for the enactment of the Chief State Prosecutor expires today”, the Office of the President of clarifies the public opinion:
The Secretary of the Office of the President of the Republic of Kosovo, on August 22, 2011, has issued the Regulation on the Procedure to be followed by the administration, namely the legal department, regarding the appointment/reappointment of candidates for Prosecutor.
This regulation regulates the admission procedures, the review procedures and the procedures on the preservation of the proposals of the Kosovo Prosecutorial Council on the appointment/reappointment of the candidates for Prosecutor upon submission in the Office of the President, moreover regulates the admission of candidate files for prosecutors, who is responsible for this, the review of proposals for the appointment/reappointment, the oath, the communication with the public, the personal data processing, security of the data and confidentiality.
This regulation defines the deadlines for the Legal Department, as part of the administration, for the review of the cases as stated in Article 4 paragraph 3 of this the Regulation “… The competent official reviews and prepares the Decree of the President for appointment no later than fifteen (15) days after receiving the proposal of the Council for appointment as foreseen in Article 4 of this regulation…”.
With this Regulation the deadlines for the completion of works by the administration of the Office of the President are defined, respectively from the Legal Department, as a way to increase the effectiveness of the administration and in no way legal deadlines for the President of the country are defined.
The Office of the President of the Republic of Kosovo emphasizes that the internal administrative regulation can neither replace the Constitution nor the laws in force. The deadlines for the appointment of the Chief State Prosecutor are defined by law and can not be changed by any other internal regulation, which has been drafted to increase the efficiency and effectiveness in the work of the administrative staff and in particular of the Legal Office in the Office of the President.
The issue of appointment or the refusal for appointment of the candidates for prosecutor is defined in the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo and the Law on the Kosovo Prosecutorial Council, both these acts are above the internal regulations of the administration.