Kosovo PM defends son for being paid to fix government car

Kosovo's prime minister has taken to Facebook to defend paying a company owned by his son to fix one of his official cars, sparking complaints of nepotism in a country rife with corruption.

Isa Mustafa came to power last December in part on a promise to root out the graft that has blighted Kosovo's development since it broke away from Serbia in a 1999 war and declared independence in 2008.

The Jeta ne Kosove news portal reported that Mustafa's office had paid 2,946 euros to a company owned by his son, Besnik, to fix an armoured BMW X5.

Responding on Monday, Mustafa wrote on his Facebook profile that he was unaware of who fixed the car, but saw no problem in his son's getting the contract.

"I did not know about this, but I don't see any problem if a car is serviced by an authorised service company. I see shame and stupidity that this becomes news, because the fact a mechanic fixes a car is not news."

The comments on his post were largely supportive, but political analyst Imer Mushkolaj said Mustafa had missed an opportunity to set an example.

"This case shows that Mustafa is one of those politicians who doesn't take responsibility for a scandal and ask for accountability, but try to cover it up with arrogance and accusations against the media and critics," he said.

According to the article, state institutions not need issue a public tender for a such a sum, but instead contact three companies and award the contract to the lowest bidder.


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