The former Minister of Transport and Communications, Mile Janakieski, and the two other accused have admitted guilt in the court case “Dizajn” (“Design”) about the purchase of urban transport buses for the Public Enterprise “JSP Skopje” from the Chinese manufacturer “Yutong” in the period when VMRO-DPMNE led the country.
After they admitted their guilt, the Basic Criminal Court – Skopje gave Janakieski and the other two co-defendants a two-year suspended prison sentence. This sentence will not be enforced unless they commit another felony in the next 5 years. The other two co-defendants that admitted their guilt were members of the Commission for Public Procurement for the busses.
The other defendant in the “Dizajn” case is VMRO-DPMNE’s MP Igor Janushev, then general director of the PE “JSP Skopje”, who at yesterday’s hearing stated he doesn’t feel any guilt, doesn’t understand the accusation, thus pleading not guilty. The trial will continue for him with a new hearing scheduled for the 28th of March.
The case is about the tendering procedure in February 2010 for the purchase of 200 double-decker buses for PE “JSP Skopje”.
They are accused for acting against the Law on Public Procurement and favoring an economic operator which didn’t submit a mandatory bank guarantee for the offer and a quality certificate until the opening of the bids. Also, the other company that placed a bid during the tendering procedure has submitted a cheaper offer by €4.7 million, but regardless, the Chinese bidder was chosen.
