Podgorica, (MINA) - The Center for Democratic Transition (CDT) has called the Comprehensive Electoral Reform Committee to extend its deadline for completing its work until June 15 of next year, in order to enable the full reform implementation.

This NGO proposed that the decision to extend the work of the Committee should provide for its intensive work and the finalization of all necessary proposals for amending the law and revising the code of ethics between January 15 to April 15 of the following year.

After this, according to CDT’s proposal, there would be an open inclusive public debate and the collection of opinions from relevant international institutions by June 1, after which the drafts would be finalized and adopted by the Parliament by June 15.

CDT Executive Director Dragan Koprivica said that the volume of the solutions prepared so far by the three working groups that operate within the Committee is not even close to the final solutions and that it is not possible to prepare final and high-quality proposals by December 31, when the Committee’s mandate expires.

“If we take into account the announcement that the Parliament will adopt around 100 laws or amendments by the end of the year, along with the regular adoption of the budget, it is clear to everyone that high-quality electoral reform cannot be expected by the end of the year”, said Koprivica.

He recalled that it is necessary to continue work on a series of interconnected processes – from the introduction of open tickets, enabling individual candidacies and direct election of local community bodies, to ensuring a transparent and accurate electoral registry, regulating the second round of presidential elections, solving the problem of disinformation in the electoral process, strengthening sanctions for abuses and protecting voting rights in line with international standards.

“Only when all these measures, which are complex, institutionally demanding and impossible to implement overnight, are taken into account, it will be possible to talk about a truly comprehensive, high-quality and sustainable electoral reform”, assessed Koprivica.