Podgorica, (MINA) - Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) MP Ivan Vukovic has resigned from as chair of the parliamentary European Integration Committee, stating that the work of this committee lost its meaning after the recent decisions of the parliamentary majority.

Vukovic told the press conference that the laws on internal affairs and the National Security Agency were adopted in the parliament, which, as he assessed, contradict the Constitution of Montenegro and democratic norms.

He said that the representatives of the opposition had warned the parliamentary majority not to adopt such solutions and to wait for their harmonization with the European legal acquis, but that the logic that “democracy is the will of the majority” had prevailed.

“In this way, the dialogue in the Parliament was rendered meaningless and the declarative consensus on European integration was violated”, Vukovic argues.

He added that he regrets the situation, reminding that the parliament had recently unanimously adopted the Resolution on Montenegro’s EU integration.

“At that time, we said that the Montenegro’s EU accession was the most important goal of state policy and that we would all primarily devote ourselves to achieving that goal. However, it turned out that for the parliamentary majority, particular political interests and the best possible positioning for the upcoming parliamentary elections are more important”, said Vukovic.

Vukovic said that he was sorry to be leaving his post, noting that the Committee had worked well in the previous period and had mostly managed to keep daily politics out of the scope of its activities.

Speaking about further steps, he said that “what we’ve started today we’ll continue in the coming days”.

"Last week we said that, as a sign of protest against the undemocratic and dangerous practice that is taking root in Montenegro, we will also leave the positions of Deputy Parliament Speaker, president of the Inquiry Committee, as well as the position of co-chair of the Comprehensive Electoral Reform Committee”, said Vukovic, adding that he expects a certain degree of opposition solidarity.