European progress is open to everyone who did not recognize anyone as credible in the last parliamentary elections.
This was said by former Montenegrin Prime Minister Duško Marković on behalf of the Party of European Progress.
"The Party of European Progress is the party of every member, not just Duško Marković. I am only one of the initiators," said Marković.
He said that the state and institutions are losing the trust of citizens.
"Our doors are open to everyone who did not recognize anyone as credible in the last elections. European stability is threatened," said Marković.
He also said that in that movement they do not see Montenegro "the way the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) sees it with the new leadership".
Marković also told the journalists that he had not seen the former DPS leader Milo Đukanović for some time, and that the two of them have a different view of what Montenegro needs.
"We don't see Montenegro the way DPS sees it with the new leadership, I haven't seen Đukanović for a while"
When asked by journalists why he parted ways with DPS and whether he sees them as partners, Marković said that he left the party.
"I remember the day when we only provided peace and stability in Montenegro and security for tens of thousands of refugees. In 2006, we realized the dream of every citizen, to put our name and surname back on the world map. I participated in that process. Later, we gave Montenegro turned towards the EU," said Marković.
He added that as the Minister of Justice, he led the process of starting negotiations for seven key chapters, and that Montenegro became a member of NATO during the mandate of the Government he was translating.
"We don't see Montenegro the way the DPS with the new leadership sees it. We within Montenegro must be united and not push each other. We have our own path, and the DPS with this leadership has its own. As for coalitions - we don't want to now we say we will cooperate with this or that party. We must first introduce ourselves to the citizens. If we become a parliamentary party, we will cooperate with everyone who wants good for Montenegro," said Marković.
When asked by a TV Vijesti journalist whether he would consider cooperation with the parliamentary majority, he said that he is ready to cooperate with everyone who sees Montenegro as a European society.
"I worked with Milo Đukanović for 30 years. We shared both personal and family relationships. We haven't seen each other for a while, but we look at what Montenegro needs differently," said Marković.
When asked what the DPS did badly before August 2020, he said that the DPS "made mistakes while working on historical processes".
"Because of those mistakes, he went to the opposition. My membership is also a great experience that one should not only deal with strategic matters, but also turn to one's surroundings. We fixed the house, but not the yard. This insight will help me to prevent in this party those bad practices that followed me. I'm still proud of what we achieved in DPS," said Marković.
"In the four years of my government, many projects were launched, luxury hotels were opened..."
When asked by a journalist what the party's economic program is, Marković said that 2019 has become a reference year on the economic front.
"Montenegro was a prestigious destination. In 2017, we became a member of NATO and it was an explosion of investors. He recalled that in the four years of his government, luxury hotels, hydropower and wind power projects were opened, and that Montenegro was visited by the vice president of the USA Mike Pence".
Marković added that he will prepare a detailed program to meet the party's assembly, which will be based on economic development - in energy, agriculture, tourism, but also the digital economy.
Damjanović: Marković was a good prime minister; Mustajbašić: The political scene is contaminated by shootings on a daily basis
Member of the executive board and former Minister of Science Sanja Damjanović, who spoke via video link, pointed out that Marković was a good prime minister and that he supported the projects proposed by the ministry she headed during her mandate.
Rozalina Lulgjuraj, a member of the Party of European Progress, said that she is joining "the project because she believes that this is what Montenegro needs".
"If the peak of the existing government is their revanchism, I will not be afraid," said Lulgjuraj.
Jelena Knežević, a doctor and member of the Initiative Board, said that for them the greatest value is a stable Montenegro.
"It is high time that we turn to the healing of Montenegro, and to get rid of retrograde stories, especially nationalism. I promise that you will be surprised by the concrete solutions that we will propose," Knežević said.
Language and literature professor Mira Lakčević said that she has been working in education for three decades and that "we understand that the latest events in schools are a red alarm".
"This team of people has taken matters into their own hands and wants to help improve education," added Lakčević.
Admir Mustajbašić assessed that the political scene is contaminated by shootings on a daily basis.
"We deeply believe that only through genuine dialogue can we create progress," said Mustajbasic.
Entrepreneur Vlastimir Ristić reminded that after independence, Montenegro became a member of NATO, and that it is on its way to achieving another goal - membership in the European Union (EU).
"We want to create a society in which knowledge will be valued, not party booklets," Ristic said.
"The pre-election speech was a call to respect the law"
Commenting on his speech that he gave at the pre-election rally on August 30, during which he said that he would open the borders and send some back to where they came from, but also the question of whether this represented the European path, Marković replied that it was not about persecution, and that he was talking about those who are in Montenegro illegally and do not respect the Constitution and laws.
"Even today, illegal stay in the country is prohibited. It was a call to respect the law and make it equal for everyone - both for me and for Amfilohi," the former prime minister pointed out and added that some citizens misunderstood his message.
"If someone understood that we wanted to expel, I apologize, but that is not true," he said.
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