Živković: The only motive of my candidacy is to sweep away the political competition

Acting President of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and candidate for that party's leader, Danijel Živković, said at the party's forum in Nikšić that there has always existed in that city and still exists today, a "firm and indomitable spirit" that resists those who tried to subjugate both Nikšić and Montenegro.

"And in the previous local elections in this city, you showed your insubordination, consistency and you preserved the dignity of DPS and Montenegro. Those achieved grandiose 41% provided stability to our politics, and brought relevance to our party on the political scene of Montenegro. "If that result had not been achieved in Nikšić then, Aleksandar Vučić and all Greater Serbia politics would have brutally dealt with all of us. You were the bulwark that defended Montenegro," Živković said at the forum on Thursday evening.

He told the assembled members of DPS that it is necessary to "look back to the past in order to know when to move to the future".

"Just imagine that Andrija Mandić or Milan Knežević were in power in the nineties in Montenegro. Then we would have a war in our country. Montenegro would have been bombed in 1999. We would not have had the Belgrade Agreement in 2003, and May 21, 2006 would never have happened. Membership in the NATO alliance would not even be thought of. Today, brother would be at odds with brother. But fortunately, we had a quality state leadership with a clear vision at the time, who knew in which direction Montenegro should go. The political state leadership at that time, which knew how to manage Montenegro, was led by a visionary, a brave native of Katunia, your native of Nikšić, Milo Đukanović, for 30 years," Živković said, as reported by the DPS.

He said that the "political storm that befell us" on August 30, 2020 must be overcome, because DPS, according to him, not only can do better, as the campaign slogan reads, but must do better.

"We must not allow Andrija Mandić to be the host of the house in Montenegro, because we know very well what he would do to Montenegro today and what he would have done to it 15-20 years ago. Andrija Mandić and Milan Knežević still have a match in their pocket today, ready to set fire to Montenegro at any moment, if their mentors need it. Jakov Milatović, who accidentally became the president of Montenegro, cannot be a good host either, because he himself says that his father wondered at the referendum in 2006, Montenegro would never become a state. It can't even be those who are in power now. That's why we have to be better, and restore dignity to DPS. That is why this political generation must return the DPS to power, so that we can be the hosts of this house", said Živković.

The candidate for DPS president said that returning to power is not a goal but a purpose, and that the purpose of his personal involvement in politics is, among other things, to "fix the situation" in that party.

"One of the basic reasons why I applied to be a candidate for DPS president is not that by returning to power we will take advantage of the opportunity for one of us to be in an important state position. It's not a privilege or intoxication with power, or anything... The only reason I signed up is to sweep our political competition together," said Živković.

"If I didn't believe in that, it would be enough that I was appointed acting president of DPS and that I carried the coalition list 'Together!' in the previous parliamentary elections. That would be enough satisfaction for me. But no, the only satisfaction for me will be when I see the backs of those who are now in power. When I see them in the political dust, and when we return Mandić, Knežević and all the other enemies of Montenegro to that box in the Parliament of Montenegro that belongs to them. Then it will be known that we have fulfilled our mission as a political generation", said Živković.

He also said that he is proud of the fact that he is a candidate for the president of the DPS and called on all members of that party to contribute to the process of electing the leadership of the DPS by participating in the vote on Sunday.

"Let's not get carried away by the fact that I am the only candidate, because on the ballot you will have the opportunity to choose YES or NO." So it is your decision whether I should be the president of DPS. On January 28, we could have chosen the party leadership differently, but we decided to communicate with our members in all 25 municipalities to share our impressions of what the vision of DPS development should look like. That's why I invite you to participate on Sunday and make the right choice", concluded Živković.