ZAGREB, Feb 20 (Hina) - The Ministry of Croatian War Veterans is to be re-organised so as to be highly efficacious, Minister Ivica Pancic told Hina. According to the Minister, the purpose of changes is to enable branch offices to
tackle 80 percent of cases and the rest should be dealt with the Ministry itself. To date, the practice has been that a lump of the job has been processed by the Ministry alone, causing many delays and obstacles in the settlement of cases, Pancic added.. The recently appointed minister announced he would reduce the current number of six assistants. Of a total of 520 employees, none will be laid off, but some who also work in the Defence Ministry will have to regulate clearly their status in the ministry and everything is to be done in line with law, respecting employees' skilfulness and knowledge, Pancic said. Pancic said they would check all allegations that some emp
ZAGREB, Feb 20 (Hina) - The Ministry of Croatian War Veterans is to
be re-organised so as to be highly efficacious, Minister Ivica
Pancic told Hina.
According to the Minister, the purpose of changes is to enable
branch offices to tackle 80 percent of cases and the rest should be
dealt with the Ministry itself.
To date, the practice has been that a lump of the job has been
processed by the Ministry alone, causing many delays and obstacles
in the settlement of cases, Pancic added..
The recently appointed minister announced he would reduce the
current number of six assistants.
Of a total of 520 employees, none will be laid off, but some who also
work in the Defence Ministry will have to regulate clearly their
status in the ministry and everything is to be done in line with law,
respecting employees' skilfulness and knowledge, Pancic said.
Pancic said they would check all allegations that some employees
with the War Veterans Ministry were involved in acts of abuse of
powers and embezzlement.
This ministry, that was set up from a department of the Defence
Ministry, received inexperienced employees and a lack of
experience was the cause of some problems. Some errors, however,
have been made deliberately, he added.
The state audit commission for 1998 found many defects and failures
in view of "transparency of spending budget money", Pancic said
adding that much must be done to remove such failures.
He announced the total computerisation of the ministry and its
branches. The introduction of information technology in the coming
months should render the Ministry's work more transparent, Pancic
said.
He pointed to problems in the communication between the ministry
and war veterans. Everybody who thinks they have the right that they
cannot yet exercise, has come first in the Ministry and wanted to
talk immediately with the Minister, he said adding that such ways of
communications hampers the effectiveness of the ministry and in the
future the ministry's services will have to give clear answers to
clients.
Although Premier Ivica Racan announced strict austerity measures,
there will be enough financial means for the hardest-hit casualties
of the Homeland War. This year, about 800 flats will be built for war
disabled soldiers and families of fallen soldiers.
Others will have to be patient as in this situation the state cannot
have money for all, Pancic explained.
(hina) ms