Seven candidates applied for the new general director of RTS, three of whom meet the conditions of the competition. One of them, Branislav Klanšček, is in a conflict of interest on the very border of legality
Branislav Klanšček, President of the Board of Directors RTS, accepted three applications for the competition for the general director of the public service, among which – Branislav Klanšček’s application. Klanschek confirmed to the media that he had accepted his own application, along with two others.
For those who find too much Klanšček in this sentence, it is clear – this election of the director of RTS takes place in a conflict of interests on the very edge of the law.
The competition for general director of the public service was announced on October 24 this year, and the deadline for applications expired on November 22. According to the “Regulations on the procedure and conditions for the selection of appointed persons”, the Management Board of the public service should appoint the general director of the public service within 45 days from the day of the opening of applications. Thus Klanšček, from this position, can prepare the appointment of himself.
Klanšček did not attend the open session at the RTS Gallery in Belgrade, and in the application accepted by the Board of Directors as “complete and timely”, he stated that he has a degree in communication studies.
The applications of lawyer Stanislav Veljković and translator Dejan Stanković were also accepted, and the Supervisory Board rejected four applications as incomplete.
Conflict of interest by law
The vice president of Serbia Center (SRCE) and former REM member Slobodan Cvejić said that Klanšček’s performances were intriguing.
“There were a lot of topics being raised, but nothing actually happened at RTS, and I’m not sure if his previous position qualifies or disqualifies him for this position,” Cvejić told TV Nova.
He said that “to some extent” it is a conflict of interest, but also that it is “possible by law”.
“But, on the other hand, this is a man who is still sitting on the Board of Directors, who will now choose a candidate. So, he could have prepared the ground for himself, lobbied, built some influence, promised some people from the Board of Directors that he would get some other positions and that way they could have some benefit from it if they chose him,” said Cvejić.
He stated that in some previous situations, it was often the case that a potential candidate for the director worked for one of his own to be elected to the Board of Directors, and that the latter then reciprocated by giving him support in some other way, on the next occasion. Cvejić stated that perhaps the current acting director, Dragan Bujošević, “by some miracle, will still have to hold that position, even in the acting capacity.”
“According to the law, it can last six months and a new competition must be announced immediately, but six months at a time – until the next elections, Vučić can be kept for half an hour in Dnevnik RTS. After that, I guess he can quietly retire to Tuscany and enjoy his retirement days,” concluded Cvejić.
Competition conditions
The conditions of the competition were that the candidate must be a citizen of Serbia and have a residence in its territory, a university degree and at least 10 years of work experience in managerial programming or jobs at media service providers of radio and television or in managerial jobs in other areas that are important for the work of the public media service.
Along with the documents confirming this, the candidate should have submitted a signed statement that he is not a holder of a public office or a position in a political party, proof that he has not been convicted and that there are no criminal proceedings against him, as well as the work and management program of RTS for the period of appointment. The term of office of the general director is five years and one person can be appointed a maximum of two times. A person who cannot be a member of the Board of Directors cannot be appointed, except for employees of media service providers.
The current director Dragan Bujošević’s second mandate, which is in progress, expires in February 2026 and he no longer has the right to be elected to that position.
Source: Vreme
