Government endorses text of PPO law, forwards it to Parliament

Jerusalem, 10 February, 2020 (TPS) -- By: MIA

The Government has endorsed the text of the draft-Law on the Public Prosecutor’s Office and forwarded it for expedited procedure in Parliament.

The text incorporates solutions that ensure functioning of the rule of law principle in line with European values of fairness and equality of arms in judicial proceedings, the Government said in a press release.

The law guarantees that all cases in the jurisdiction of the Special Prosecutor’s Office are tried before the competent courts through an evidence-based, professional and fair procedure.

A novelty in the draft-law is the election of a public prosecutor in the Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime and Corruption, which is to be carried out by a vote by the Council of Public Prosecutors. The person with most votes from the list of qualified candidates is to be appointed chief prosecutor.

The law enters into parliamentary procedure after the ruling authorities said they secured the two-thirds majority needed for its adoption in Parliament. The parliamentary majority counts on the votes of the VMRO-DPMNE Independent MP Group, Alliance of Albanians, Alternative and Besa.

The law is expected to go through by February 12, when the Parliament is set to dissolve and open the path for the April 12 early parliamentary elections