At the Serbian Palace of Justice, NARS Speaker Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic was handed the Code of Good Administration for further procedure at the National Assembly. The proposal was drafted by the Ombudsman in cooperation with European partners and it represents an act of self-obligation for public office bearers to act legally and properly when addressed by the public. The Code of Good Administration shall represent a guide of good administrative behaviour on both the local and republican level, and the inclusion of all social segments, the media in particular, is paramount for its implementation.

In her address, Djukic-Dejanovic stressed that she viewed the Code as a response to a fundamental need to establish a more appropriate attitude of public authorities and public officials towards their job and the citizens. “The Code, in fact, represents a very useful mechanism for raising the public officials’ awareness about who they really are – a public service. By accepting the tenets of the Code, the public officials promote responsibility as a principle of work and express the public authorities’ readiness to observe European standards of good administration”, said the Assembly Speaker.

In order to monitor the implementation of the Code, the National Assembly, in cooperation with the Ombudsman, intends to organise public hearings on the subject of good administration i.e. the relations between public authorities and public officials and the citizens. These public hearings would be organised in cooperation with the non-governmental sector and expert public, primarily as part of the sittings of the Justice and Administration Committee and other standing bodies of the Assembly. In these public sittings, following a constructive discussion, the deputies can adopt conclusions and recommend measures to improve the realisation of the civil rights guaranteed by the Code, on the behalf and for the benefit of the citizens.

The Assembly Speaker added that the media play an important role in the process by pointing out examples of both bad and good administration and informing the citizens of the behaviour standards contained within the Code.