Podgorica, (MINA) - The most active MPs in the parliamentary sessions are not necessarily those who make the most official trips, while some MPs with minimal participation in debates have recorded a large number of trips and high expenses financed by citizens, according to the analysis by the Center for Civic Education (CGO).

As part of its monitoring of the work of the Parliament of Montenegro, the CGO analyzed the relationship between the plenary activity of MPs and parliamentary groups, measured by the duration of their speeches, and official trips financed from public funds.

Nikola Djurasevic, CGO program associate, said that the findings clearly indicate different approaches to the parliamentary function.

The most striking example is PES MP Gordan Stojovic, who spoke in the plenum for only 15 minutes and 14 seconds over nearly three years, while in two and a half years he made 23 official trips with a total cost of EUR 55,000, Djurasevic stated.

According to him, Stojovic stands out as the least active MP in the plenum, while his official travel expenses exceed the expenses of the seven most active MPs combined.

“Namely, the seven most active MPs, with a total of about 134 hours of speeches in the plenum, made 35 official trips worth about EUR 34,900, while Stojovic alone had about 60 percent higher expenses for official travel”, Djurasevic added.

He said that similar patterns are visible at the level of parliamentary clubs, where significant travel expenses were recorded for the clubs with the fewest minutes.

Djurasevic pointed out that parliamentary mandate does not only entail international visibility and travel, but above all active participation in debates, control of the executive branch and representation of citizens’ interests in the Parliament.

He said that this is why official trips must have a clear institutional effect and measurable results, especially when they are used by MPs whose plenary engagement is almost invisible.