Recommendations for Overcoming Challenges of Whistleblowing in Public Procurement Procedures
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22364/jull.15.05Keywords:
importance of whistleblowers, public procurement, prevention, irregularitiesAbstract
Public procurement is an area very vulnerable to corruption, which was especially evident during the Covid-19 virus pandemic. Pandemic called for prompt state response, including urgent public procurement procedures that resulted in numerous irregularities (e.g., “Silver Raspberry” case). The possibility of discretionary decision-making contributed to irregularities, and the absence of financial controls, which due to the urgency of the procedure could not be implemented in a timely manner. Therefore, if financial control systems are not able to function smoothly, the question of modalities of strengthening transparency and control in public procurement procedures arises. One possibility to inform the public about irregularities is through whistleblowers. However, this also depends on the level of whistleblower protection in respective national legislation. Whistleblowers in public procurement can face a variety of challenges. Starting from the assumption that the protection of whistleblowers and the whistleblowing process itself needs to be further improved, authors offer recommendations for improving the position of whistleblowers in public procurement procedures at the national level of European countries based on the application of dogmatic-legal method and content analysis.
References
Boot, R. E. The Feasibility of a Public Interest Defense for Whistleblowing. Law and Philosophy, Vol. 39, No. 1, 2020, pp. 1–34. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10982-019-09359-1
Dussuyer, I., Armstrong, A. and Smith, R. Research into Whistleblowing, Protection Against Victimisation. Journal of Law and Governance, Vol. 10, No. 3, 2015, pp. 34–42. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15209/jbsge.v10i3.860
Đurić, V., Vranješ, N. Pravni okvir uloge lokalne samouprave u ostvarivanju javnog interesa – Primeri Republike Srbije i Republike Srpske [Legal framework of the role of local self-government in the realization of public interest – Examples of the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Srpska]. Godišnjak fakulteta Pravnih nauka [Yearbook of the Faculty of Law], No. 10, 2020, pp. 48–69.
Kostić, J., Matić Bošković, M. Public Procurements during the Covid-19 Pandemic Time-Lessons for the Republic of Serbia. In: International organizations and State’s response to Covid-19, Jelisavac Trošić, S., Gordanić, J. (eds). Belgrade: Institute of International Politics and Economics, 2021, pp. 339–359. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18485/iipe_response2covid19.2021.ch20
Martić, M. Uporednopravni aspekti pojma uzbunjivača [Comparative legal aspects of the notion of whistleblowers]. Strani pravni život [Foreign Legal Life], 60(1), 2016, pp. 201–214.
Matic Boskovic, M. Krivično delo zloupotreba u javnim nabavkama – izazovi u primeni [Criminal offense of abuse in public procurement – challenges in implementation]. In: Privredna krivična dela [Economic crimes], Stevanović, I., Čolović, V. (eds). Belgrade:Institute of Criminological and Sociological Research and Institute of Comparative Law, 2017, pp. 215–229.
Matić Bošković, M., Kostić, J. The Legislation of the Republic of Serbia in the Field of Prevention of Corruption on Public Procurement. Bratislava Law Review, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2021, pp. 145–158. Available: https://doi.org/10.46282/blr.2021.5.1.234 [last viewed 13.4.2022]. DOI: https://doi.org/10.46282/blr.2021.5.1.234
Rabrenović, A. Kostić, J. and Matić, M. Open Dilemma: How to react to illegal orders from a superior. In: Integrity and Good Governance in the Western Balkans, Respa, Regional School of Public Administration. In: Rabrenović A. and Knežević Bojović A. (eds). 2018, pp. 303–314. Available: http://iup.rs/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Integrity-and-Good-Governance-in-the-WB.pdf [last viewed 13.04.2022].
Scaturro, R. Deffining Whistleblowing, Laxenburg: International Anti-Corruption Academy. 2018.
Teichmann, F., Falker, M. C. Public procurement and corruption during Covid-19; self-monitoring and whistleblowing incentives after Srebrena Malina. SEER Journal for Labour and Social Affairs in Eastern Europe, Vol. 24. Issue 2, 2021, pp. 181–206. Available: https://doi: org/10.5771/1435-2869-2021-2-181 [last viewed 13.04.2022]. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5771/1435-2869-2021-2-181
Tomić, Z. Javni poredak: Pojam i struktura [Public order: Concept and structure]. Anali Pravnog fakulteta u Beogradu [Annals of the Faculty of Law in Belgrade], Vol. 67, No. 2, 2019, pp. 34–48. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5937/AnaliPFB1902035T
Varinac, S., Ninić, I. Korupcijska mapa sistema javnih nabavki u Republici Srbiji [Corruption map of the public procurement system in the Republic of Serbia]. Belgrade: OEBS, 2014.
Višekruna, A. Modeli podsticanja aktivnosti uzbunjivanja na finansijskom tršištu [Models for encouraging whistleblowing activities in the financial market]. Pravo i privreda [Law and economics], No. 4–6, 2016, pp. 368–385.
Šarić, M., Stojanović, M. Nadzornici odustaju od kontrole najskupljih javnih nabavki [Civic supervisors give up control of the most expensive public procurements], Centar za istraživačko novinarstvo Srbije. 2018. Available: https://www.cins.rs/nadzornici-odustaju-od-kontrole-najskupljih-javnih-nabavki/ [last viewed 14.04.2022].
Šuput, J. Državna revizorska institucija i prevencija kriminaliteta belog okovratnika u javnom sektoru [State Audit Institution and White-Collar Crime Prevention in the Public Sector]. Zbornik radova Pravnog fakulteta u Nišu, broj 67/2914, pp. 321–346.
Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms as amended by Protocols No. 11 and 14, Rome, 4.XI.1950. Available: https://www.echr.coe.int/documents/convention_eng.pdf [last viewed 13.04.2022].
Directive (EU) 2016/943 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2016 on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets) against their unlawful acquisition, use and disclosure, L 157/1. Available: https://wipolex.wipo.int/en/text/423032 [last viewed 14.04.2022].
Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019 on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law. Available: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eudr/2019/1937 [last viewed 14.04.2022].
Recommendation CM/Rec(2014)7 adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 30 April 2014 and explanatory memorandum. Available: https://rm.coe.int/16807096c7 [last viewed 14.04.2022].
The Law on Public Procurement, Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, No. 124/12.
The Law on Public Procurement, Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, No. 91/2019.
Estimating the Economic Benefits of Whistleblower Protection in Public Procurement. Final Report, Luxembourg: European Commission, 2017. Available: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/8d5955bd-9378-11e7-b92d-01aa75ed71a1/language-en [last viewed 13.04.2022].
European Commission. Public Procurement. 2021. Available: https://ec.europa.eu/growth/single-market/public-procurement_en [last viewed 13.04.2022].
Investigation into government procurement during the Covid-19 pandemic. Report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, Cabinet Office, 26. November 2020. Available: //www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/investigation-into-government-procurement-during-the-COVID-19-pandemic.pdf [last viewed 13.04.2022].
OECD. Public Procurement. 2019. Available: https://www.oecd.org/governance/ethics/public-procurement.htm [last viewed 13.04.2022].
Whistleblower gets justice after 7 years, 26.06.2019. Available: https://spectator.sme.sk/c/22154429/it.took.lubica-lapinova-7-years-to-get-justice-done-white-crow. html [last viewed 13.4.2022].
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
