With 13 out of 14 votes, Branko Ushkovski, the only candidate, was elected president of the Judicial Council. One of the ballots was invalid.
He said that he will conscientiously and responsibly perform the function and will work together with colleagues who elected him president.
Asked to comment the published materials from the wiretapping and how it will affect the credibility of the Judicial Council, Ushkovski assures that all judges work honestly, except a very small part, where oversights in the work was registered.
Ushkovski is former Deputy of Aleksandra Zafirovska, previous President of the Judicial Council.
Ushkovski is former lawyer at the Ministry of Defense, selected on the proposal of VMRO-DPMNE in the Council.
He is the only member of the Council from the candidates Macedonians who has never been a judge, and was proposed by Vlatko Samardzhiski, a member of the Council and judge of the Court of Appeal – Skopje.
Justice Minister Adnan Jashari said that he personally considers that for reasons of efficiency and functionality of the judiciary, the election for President of the Judicial Council is necessary.
– In the previous situation, the Judicial Council was non-functional – Jashari said.
This statement of Jashari is contradictory to the statement of Aleksandra Zafirovska, who in her address said that despite the writings of journalists that the Judicial Council is not functional in the past months, they worked with full steam and were not idle at all.
The Judicial Council is authorized to appoint and dismiss judges, to elect and dismiss presidents of courts, to establish cessation of judicial function, to appoint and dismiss judges-jurors, to monitor and evaluate the work of judges.
It decides on the disciplinary responsibility of judges, determines incompetent performance of the judicial function, determines the termination of judicial office for permanent inability to work as a judge, the right to revoke the immunity of judges, decides on the request for approval of the arrest of a judge and proposes two judges to Constitutional Court of the Republic of Macedonia from among the judges.
