The Kosovo Chamber of Private Bailiffs has reacted to the statement of Bekim Salihu, policy analyst at the GAP Institute, who said on the "Konfront" show on KTV on June 5 that "in February alone, bailiffs earned 10 million euros from teachers' cases."
In a response to Koha.net, the OPPK said that this statement is untrue and constitutes "serious defamation of our profession."
Support the TIME. Preserve the truth.
Professional journalism is in the public interest. Your support helps it remain independent and credible. Contribute too. 1 euro makes a difference.
Letter to the Reader — Why We're Asking for Your Support ContributeIn response, the OPPK said that the amount highlighted by this analyst is 11 times higher than what, according to the announcement, these bailiffs have collected in this period.
"The statement that private bailiffs earned 10 million euros in February alone from teachers' cases is completely untrue and constitutes a serious defamation of our profession.
Attached to this email is our official request for a retraction and public apology, which details the accurate and verifiable facts. According to our official data, the amount highlighted by the analyst and published on your portal is 11 times higher than the amount that bailiffs have collected from all bailiff fees, which proves the fictional nature of this statement," the reaction states.
According to the OPPK, in this period the total amount returned to teachers is over 5 million euros, the amount for lawyers, experts, and contested and enforcement procedures is 1.2 million, and the total amount of enforcement expenses is over 850 thousand euros.
"As evidenced by official figures, the claim that bailiffs have earned '10 million euros' is a fabrication that exceeds more than 11 times the real amount. This fact clearly proves that Mr. Salihu's statement is not based on any fact, but is a harmful fabrication," the reaction states.
The article to which the OPPK reacted:
GAP responds to the Chamber of Private Bailiffs
The GAP Institute has responded to the reaction of the Chamber of Private Bailiffs, regarding the statement made by GAP policy analyst Bekim Salihu, a week ago on the "Konfront" show on KTV.
On Wednesday, the OPPK called Salihu's statement, which he said on the June 5 broadcast that "in February alone, bailiffs earned 10 million euros from teachers' cases," "serious defamation." According to the OPPK, the amount mentioned by Salihu was 11 times higher than what, according to the reaction, these bailiffs collected in this period.
After the publication of this reaction, GAP responded. This institute recalled that the figure was also mentioned by the acting Minister of Finance, Hekuran Murati. This institute also said that the problems arising from government decisions do not make the bailiffs responsible or guilty for the situation.
GAP's full response:
We have carefully read and reviewed your email and the content submitted.
First, let us emphasize that, not only in this case, but in all other cases, the GAP Institute follows strict principles of integrity, professionalism and ethics. This excludes any possibility and space for any entity, individual or organization to be labeled or intentionally harmed by us.
Regarding the specific case, Mr. Bekim Salihu, in his capacity as a representative from the GAP Institute, participated in an interview on KTV (Kohavision) television, in the show "Konfront", where, among other things, he spoke about the latest analysis published by GAP with the title "In search of a solution: enforcement cases in municipalities".
In this interview, according to the attached source, the policy analyst said (transcript):
"In February of this year alone, the Ministry of Finance received 38 million euros for execution. 28 million euros are dedicated to teachers, 10 million euros go to bailiffs. And the Minister of Finance, Hekuran Murati, comes out and makes a reaction and says that this situation is serious and is caused by past governments, which is correct and true, and asks the prosecution to take steps. We as an institute have not requested the engagement of the prosecution, but of the ministry." (quote ends)
Honorable representatives of the Chamber of Private Bailiffs,
The policy analyst and each GAP representative cannot quote or assert issues that do not have an attached source. The above quote is the position and information of the Minister of Finance, Labor and Transfers in the Government of Kosovo, who on February 25, through a post on the social network Facebook, asserted the same thing that Mr. Salihu said on the show. This post by Mr. Murati was widely published in the media.
Furthermore, the GAP Institute in the presented analysis does not deal at all with the issue of legitimate benefits on the part of bailiffs. This has not been the focus of the analysis, because we have assessed that the public interest does not coincide with the benefits of bailiffs. Furthermore, the problems arising from government decisions do not make bailiffs responsible or guilty for the situation.
Please, in addition to the source of the attached interview, also see Mr. Murati's post and also the GAP Institute's analysis regarding enforcement cases.
We remain completely open and ready for additional clarifications, and we also hope to have opportunities for friendly and professional cooperation in the future.