The session of the Assembly of the Municipality of Cetinje is scheduled for Monday, and the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP) are on the threshold of an agreement on the formation of the government, Vijesti has learned.
The deadline for the constitution of the Cetinje Municipal Assembly by electing the president expires on Monday. The Law on Local Self-Government and the Capital Statute stipulate that the assembly is constituted by the election of the president, for which the deadline is 60 days from the announcement of the official election results.
The official results of the elections held on December 5 were announced by the Municipal Election Commission on the ninth, and in the Official Gazette, from when the deadline of 60 days for the constitution of the Assembly applies, on December 16.
After the election of the president of the Municipal Council, there is a 30-day period when the president of the municipality should be elected.
The Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP), which won the most mandates in the elections on December 5, have not yet reached an agreement because they are arguing over the function of the mayor of the municipality, but he is on the way, several interlocutors said.
After the DPS of Cetinje offered the SDP on Thursday to jointly form a government in that city, so that Raško Konjević's party will receive the position of head of the capital's Assembly and two positions of the capital's deputy mayor, the SDP responded that they consider the offer unworthy.
"Colleagues from the DPS, we do not want and do not allow the story of the future of Cetinje to be reduced to trading functions. For this reason, we consider the offer you made unworthy, and just such an approach is a key legacy from the previous period, which marked the general decline of our capital".
The SDP states that the civil and open concept they offer gives them the right to propose that the candidate for the mayor of Cetinje in the current term be a non-party person from the list "With all my heart for Cetinje" - someone who, with his reputation and knowledge, will stamp the renewal and recovery Cetinje, while the president of the capital's Assembly would be a DPS candidate.
They propose as an option that the representative of their electoral list, in accordance with the principle of rotation, be the mayor in the first half of the term, while the representative of DPS would be the candidate for mayor in the second half of the term.
The DPS from Cetinje did not make any announcements about the SDP offer yesterday. Negotiations on behalf of DPS, as unofficially learned by "Vijesti", are led by the coordinator for Cetinje, DPS vice president Ivan Vuković and three other members of the municipal board.
The president of the municipal board, Miloš Ražnatović, recently resigned, and now, until the conference, a working group of eight members performs that function, "Vijesti" was told.
At the end of last year, DPS invited those political subjects "who inherit the same values and share the same goals, and which are based on Euro-Atlantic integration, civil and multi-ethnic state and anti-fascist ideas" to discuss the formation of the government in the capital.
On the other hand, the Cetinje URA announced yesterday that their unconditional support to the SDP and the Old Guard in the formation of the government is still on the table. They state that, although they have personnel who can cover the most responsible functions and bring about changes in the management of Cetinje, they are ready to sacrifice the party interest for the sake of the general interest and give minority support to the SDP government and the Old Guard, without participating in any way in the government structures.
"We believe that if they have even a hint of desire to fundamentally change things in Cetinje, then there is no common sense logic for the SDP and the Old Guard not to accept the proposal, and take power into their own hands and form a four-year government in Cetinje based on their principles", it was announced from GP URA.
Yesterday, the Old Guard of LSCG did not answer the question of "Vijesti" with whom they are negotiating and what is their position regarding the GP URA offer. They previously held talks with the SDP about the formation of the government.
The chairman of the board of the Democrats of Cetinje, Danilo Mrvaljević, told "Vijesta" that as far as the negotiations on the formation of the government in the capital are concerned, they only have information available from the media.
"Thus, these days, like other citizens of Cetinje, we witnessed that there was a polemic between DPS and SDP officials on this topic even through social networks, but also that they participated in the negotiations about Cetinje, out of the public eye. Ivan Vuković and Raško Konjević, as well as that these negotiations have been going on for a long time, although the opposite was claimed until a few days ago".
Mrvaljević said that the Democrats stand by their position - either Cetinje or DPS, stating that this was their clear message to the SDP from the very beginning.
"Because one thing excludes the other, it is impossible to go to the recovery of the capital with those who are directly responsible for its downfall in the last three decades, be it in coalitions, rotations or other similar arrangement".
The local parliament of the capital has 33 councilors, which means that the government can form 17 councilors. In the elections, the Democratic Party of Socialists won 14 mandates, the SDP eight, the Civic Movement URA four, the Old Guard of LSCG and Democratic Montenegro three mandates each, and the coalition of Social Democrats and the Liberal Party one mandate.
The councilors' mandates were verified on January 4.
Mrvaljević: For all models that exclude DPS, not behind the backs of Cetinje
The president of the municipal committee of the Cetinje Democrats, Danilo Mrvaljević, pointed out that they have made it clear several times that they are open to discussing absolutely all models that completely exclude DPS.
"However, not behind the backs of women and men from Cetinje, but completely openly and honestly, without any conditions and trade of functions. And of course, without the participation of officials and delegations from Podgorica. Our position is clear: Cetinje should be decided by the people of Cetinje. And they had their say - not DPS. The Democrats and the Old Guard of LSCG behave accordingly all the time, and I'm sure they will stay that way until the end," said Mrvaljević.
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