22.07.2015.
SAF Second Lieutenant rewarded for refusing bribe reporting the case to the superiors
The improper offer that Second Lieutenant of the quartermaster corps Tihomir Kricka from the formation of the First Training Center of the Training Command and member of the acceptance committee received from a driver of a transportation company that delivers fuel oil to the Sombor barracks began with words: “It will be good for both of us!”
The “good” required “meddling” during the weighing of the tank after which some of the fuel oil would remain in it, available for illegal sale and unlawful profit, and a part of the sum would be given to the young officer, with open doors for “future cooperation”.Kricka immediately reported the attempt to President of the Committee for acceptance of the fuel oil Captain Dubravko Maric, MSc, who reported it to his superior command. The case is under investigation, but the young Second Lieutenant has already been rewarded for his actions by the Commander of the Training Command with five days of bonus leave.
- That day, I received the second thank that had arrived in the morning and I followed the prescribed procedure by asking to conduct control weighing on the scale – Second Lieutenant said. While going to the weighing section, the driver asked him if the weighing device read the weight value or if the person conducting the weighing wrote the number on a paper.
- After I said that the results were written manually, the driver offered me to conduct illicit practice during the weighing in order to gain material profit for both of us. I felt uncomfortable upon hearing this, as I had never found myself in such a situation. A bit clumsily, or rather in confusion, I evaded the response in order to buy time, but after he repeated the question, I clearly said that I was not interested in his offer – the young Second Lieutenant said.
According to the Second Lieutenant, the driver had probably had a hidden compartment in the “booth”, which he would manually close during the pouring out of the fuel oil, while his task would be to note a ton or two less while registering the results, which would remain in the hidden compartment, and the devices would show that everything was poured out. The “ploy” that the driver suggested would earn them between 200 and 250 euros each. When asked if he had pondered the offer if just for a second, Kricka said he had not, and stressed that it was the greatest honour for him to personally contribute to the reputation of his unit and the Serbian Armed Forces.
- I never thought of taking someone else’s property, what someone else has earned – he said, adding that he was certain every officer would react the same way in such a situation.
Vladimir Vjestic
