The Ministry published administrative instructions for the petition for the removal of the mayors in the north

The Ministry of Local Government Administration of Kosovo has published an administrative instruction that allows citizens to submit a petition for the removal of the mayors in the north.

The instruction stipulates that the petition must be supported by at least 20 percent of registered voters in the municipality, in order to organize a vote on the dismissal of the mayor from that position. The deadline for collecting signatures is 30 days.

The administrative instruction stipulates that any individual or group of citizens, with the right to vote, can launch an initiative to dismiss the mayor, and when they do so, they need to designate a responsible person who will serve as a “point of contact" and who, before the start of collecting signatures, electronically or physically, informs the President of the Municipal Assembly about it.

The President of the Municipal Assembly has a deadline of three working days, after receiving the notification, to inform the responsible person about the number of registered voters in that municipality, submit a unique list for collecting signatures, and inform the Ministry about it. If he does not meet that deadline, the relevant Ministry will do so within two working days.

The municipality, or the Ministry, from the moment the request is accepted, requests from the Central Election Commission the number of registered voters for a certain Municipality, based on which the minimum number of 20 percent is calculated.

The deadline for collecting signatures is 30 days from the submission of the necessary documentation. Signatures are collected in physical form, and in order to make the collection easier, an electronic register of signatories can be established.

The collected signatures are submitted to the chairman of the Municipal Assembly, who is obliged to forward them to the CEC within five days and inform the citizens and the Ministry about this.

The Central Election Commission, in accordance with the law, certifies the list of signatures, which, after checking, informs the chairman of the Municipal Assembly and the Ministry of the final assessment.

If, after verification, the signatures of those who are not registered voters in a certain municipality are determined, their signatures will be invalid.

If it is determined that the petition was not supported by at least 20 percent of the number of registered voters, the citizens' initiative is given the opportunity to supplement the request with additional signatures within ten days.

When it is determined that the request is supported by at least 20 percent of the voters, a vote is organized to dismiss the mayor from that position.

The administrative instruction enters into force on the day of its publication in the Official Gazette.

The relevant Minister, Elbert Krasniqi, previously announced that the instruction would be adopted by the end of this month.