Extraordinary elections in Podgorica can be called this week, and some parties have started coalition negotiations even earlier, because the dissolution of the local parliament was almost certain months ago.
During the discussion at yesterday's session, where the local parliament was dissolved by the votes of opposition councilors, the Movement for Podgorica close to the current president Jakov Milatović, the Civic Movement (GP) URA and a councilor from the Movement for Change (PzP), not much was said about the city's problems, but many councilors used the parliamentary microphone for the pre-election campaign.
The legal deadline for the date of the elections is 60 to 100 days from the announcement, and the elections must be held on Sunday, so going to the polls in the capital would have to be organized from September 29 to October 27.
"In the event of the termination of the mandate of the assembly before the expiration of the term for which it was elected, the President of Montenegro shall call for elections on the following day from the date of entry into force of the decision on dissolution, i.e. from the date of entry into force of the decision on shortening the mandate of the assembly", reads the Law on Local Self-Government.
Extraordinary elections in Podgorica can be called as early as tomorrow, if the Official Gazette publishes it today, because in the summary of the decision that was adopted yesterday, it is written that it will come into force on the day of its publication in the Official Gazette.
A source from the current ruling coalition said that the Europe Now Movement and the Democrats are discussing pre-election cooperation, with the possibility of a Bosniak party together with them, but another source from the ruling coalition said that there has been no discussion yet. "Who says we will join a coalition at all", said the interlocutor from DCG.
"Vijesti" has learned that there have been informal discussions about a joint performance between the Movement for Podgorica and GP URA, and possibly with PzP, and the options are that the list should be headed by a non-party person, which is represented by Milatović's councilors, or that the list should be headed by the deputy mayor Luka Rakcevic iz GP URA.
However, he said at the session that his position was that the URA should have acted independently in the extraordinary elections. Member of the GP URA Milena Vuković Sekulović pointed out in one of her presentations that Rakčević is the new mayor.
It is speculated that the eventual list with the Movement for Podgorica could also include people from the former SNP, headed by Danijela Đurović and Marko Kovač, who recently announced that they were forming a party and would participate in the Podgorica elections.
The European Alliance coalition, which consists of the Social Democrats (SD), the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the Liberal Party (LP), announced during its formation that they prefer an independent performance. At the press conference after the session, they announced that they could not give a precise answer with whom they would form the government after the extraordinary elections in the capital, but that they had a broad coalition capacity and that the only parties that were not acceptable to them were the former Democratic Front (DF).
One of the parties of the former Democratic Front said that they had not yet discussed anything about pre-election cooperation, but it is speculated that a gathering of several parties of that provenance is possible.
After a two-year hiatus, the Socialist People's Party (SNP) could return to the city parliament, which "Vijesti" has unofficially learned is discussing a coalition with the former Democratic Front and parties close to them, as well as with PES.
PES councilors have repeated several times that the opposition, as well as colleagues from the Movement for Podgorica, GP URA are in a hurry to go to the elections before the implementation of the "Europe Now 2" program, which announced the payment of increased salaries on November 1, and they also emphasized many things that have been achieved at the state level, such as increasing salaries, obtaining a positive IBAR...
From this party, they also repeated that a coalition is being formed between the Democratic Party of Socialists, GP URA and Milatović.
Member of the PES Boris Pejović reminded that MP URA Miloš Konatar recently announced the fall of the Government in the state parliament, and that "everything starts in Podgorica".
His party colleague Branka Markovic assessed that "all the masks have fallen" and that their "party colleague from yesterday is not afraid to overthrow the government in Podgorica with the DPS".
"Although he should be the president of all citizens, the former vice-president of PES is overthrowing the government with DPS and GP URA. He started with obstruction within the party and disrespecting the decisions of the Main Committee, so he pulled two female deputies out of the party, and then obstructed the formation of the Government. All these events in Podgorica exposed his intentions," she said.
The president of their caucus Vasilije Carapić said in his speech that he will see if "Drago Vučinić is the new Drago Đurović, and Nađa Ljiljanić is the new Stevan Džaković".
He indirectly attacked the GP URA that they were to blame for the failure of negotiations to resolve the crisis because the agreement did not depend on the Movement for Podgorica, but on the Blok 11 coalition, which, in addition to the councilors of that movement, also includes local parliamentarians from Abazović's party and PzP.
"It was the same story when Dritan (Abazović) signed the Memorandum on Cooperation during the 42nd Government, so he collapsed with the DPS and formed a new Government. The negotiations with the Movement for Podgorica were a farce, and shortly afterwards the so-called Block 11. The agreement did not depend on the Movement but on Block 11, which rejected it. Block 11 was determined to make all decisions together," Čarapić announced.
New Serbian Democracy (NSD) councilor Mitar Šušić also asked Rakčević whether he would form a coalition with the Movement for Podgorica and DPS.
"Maybe somewhere you are coordinating this process with the DPS, which as the opposition is doing it ex officio. Maybe you are using the president of the country for your own benefit", he said.
Mitar Susic from NSD also pointed out that there is a new political reality, and that some who were on opposite sides until yesterday are cooperating today.
"We will leave the hall before voting to enable citizens to get a visual impression of the outline of a new coalition in Podgorica, regardless of whether they come out in one, two or more columns," said the NSD councilor.
His coalition partner Stefan Vesovic from Prava Montenegro said for yesterday's vote that Podgorica is becoming a field for state struggles.
SDP councilor Budmir Mugoša disputed the allegations about the coalition, saying that "those from the opposition have their reasons, and part of the government has their own."
"The thesis is that there is a new government here. If that were the case, we would not dissolve the parliament, but would only vote for a new government as a new majority," he said.
Democratic councilwoman Zdenka Popović asked colleagues from the ruling majority "what will they do before the citizens".
She said that at the session there was no critical speech about the work of the mayor and the city administration.
"Will we get it if we return the mandate to the citizens, then ask them for it again? Democratic Montenegro will not participate in this farce," she said.
PzP councilors were expelled from the party because they voted against the wishes of the headquarters
After not voting for shortening the mandate of the local Assembly, PzP councilors Mladen Jovanović and Goran Šćepanović were expelled from the party.
After the Podgorica party committee decided to vote for the dissolution of the assembly, two councilors decided to ignore that decision.
Šćepanović pointed out that he cannot vote for the shortening of the mandate with DPS, because they created a situation where young people leave Montenegro.
"I was for that flag when they beat us. There were less than four percent of us for independent Montenegro in 1992. That's why I can't vote with them," he said.
Šćepanović said that he is one of the founders of PzP, and that before that he was a member of the Liberal Alliance of Montenegro.
Rakčević: The elections prevent the blockade of the city
Rakčević has repeatedly mentioned that elections are the only solution, and that the city will be blocked if this does not happen, as well as that he is aware that this is putting his party at risk, but that they are taking it on.
Looking for the culprit for the crisis in the city, Rakčević noted that "It was the Europe Now Movement (PES) that split, not the GP URA, Democrats, DF...", and that they tried everything in their power to a solution was reached, but that physical confrontation between Tihomir Dragaš and his colleagues from the Movement for Podgorica was prevented at some meetings.
"If we came to this, we did not merge PES or separate it, but we tried to reconcile them. We showed the breadth when we voted for Injac as mayor, who was not the holder of the list, so her legitimacy may be questionable. We only have two choices. The opposition legitimately, as any opposition would, took advantage of the discord. Our duty was to shorten the mandate, not to allow someone to get along with it," said the deputy mayor.
Note: In the first version of the text, it was stated that Milatović will call for special elections in Podgorica today. News apologizes to readers for this oversight
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