DUI seeks political and criminal accountability over Alta Banka case

DUI will seek political and criminal accountability over the acquisition of the former Economic Bank of Bitola by Serbia’s Alta Banka. The party’s deputy leader, Arta Bilalli Zendeli, announced this during an interview on the programme “Triling”.

Asked whether her party would seek political and criminal accountability, Bilalli Zendeli confirmed that it would.

She said scrutiny of the matter should not be limited to a parliamentary oversight hearing. She called on the Prosecutor’s Office, the Financial Police and other competent institutions to investigate the case and initiate proceedings. Bilalli Zendeli also cited her experience as a lawyer and criminal law specialist in support of this position.

Her remarks follow the placement of Alta Banka AD Bitola under temporary administration. This came after Alta Banka AD Belgrade, the majority owner of the Bitola bank, lost its operating licence in Serbia.

Bilalli Zendeli called on the responsible institutions to explain how the transaction granting the Serbian bank majority ownership of the Bitola bank was approved.

Among those she expects to be held accountable, she named National Bank Governor Trajko Slaveski, the chairwoman of the Securities Commission and the government led by VMRO-DPMNE and VLEN.

In her assessment, this transfer of ownership could not have taken place without the knowledge and support of the highest levels of the state.

She linked the Serbian bank’s entry into the Macedonian market to what she described as a political alliance between Viktor Orbán, Aleksandar Vučić and Hristijan Mickoski.