The chair of the President of the Municipality of Budva for a year and a half in Spuž

"He is a man of vision and that is why he received the absolute support of the citizens in the elections. He is recognized as a man of words and deeds. Budva is in safe hands". With these words, exactly 19 months ago, on January 9, 2023, the current president of the Municipal Assembly, Nikola Jovanović, explained the candidacy of Milo Božović by the then single club of Democratic Front councilors, 18 of them, for president of the Municipality of Budva.

Even today, after a year and seven months, Božović, despite the fact that since April 13 of last year he has been in Spuška prison under the charge of being a member of the police drug cartel, and that he was charged with having participated in the smuggling of several tons of cocaine, is in the chair of the first man of the metropolis of tourism. Although back in March, the Government requested that the Municipal Assembly make a decision to temporarily remove Božović from his job, this was the reason for the parliament to make a decision to shorten the mandate instead.

Today, after the May local elections, even after two full months, the government has not been constituted, so Božović cannot be dismissed either by the old convocation of the Municipal Assembly, or by a new one, because the president of the Municipal Assembly has not been elected. The truth is that none of the parties, neither from the government, nor from the opposition, has attempted to replace Božović in detention, except that in their messages and announcements it is inappropriate for "Budva to be managed from Spuž".

And that, we remind you, on January 9, on the church, Orthodox holiday Šćepandan, as it was mentioned at the time, the Budva Municipal Assembly, with the votes of the councilors of the Democratic Front, the Civic Movement URA, the Socialist People's Party and the Democrats, elected Milo Božović as the President of the Municipality for the next four-year term . Opposition councilors from the ranks of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the coalition gathered around the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) were against it.

Božović previously, on the eve of the New Year, submitted his resignation from the position of President of the Municipality, to which he was appointed by the Board of Commissioners in mid-August last year, after the resignation of the previous President of the Municipality, Marko Carević.

After he was voted in with the highest support in the local parliament up to that time, as many as 24 of them out of a total of 33 voted, Božović said that he would try to justify the support shown and bring prosperity to Budva and its citizens.

"I have always seen politics as a way to solve citizens' problems, not to produce them or create new ones. For me, a politician in the true sense of the word is one who is dedicated to the general interest and works for the benefit of citizens and not for personal or exclusively party interests. That's the motto that will be my guide during the performance of the duties of the president of the municipality and something that I will not deviate from regardless of the circumstances," said Božović at the time.

However, only three months later, members of the Special Police Department broke into his family home in the center of Budva at dawn and arrested Božović.

During those three months, Božović practically did not even constitute his team, knowingly or unknowingly, that is, he did not appoint the vice presidents of the Municipality, so practically for the next 11 months, until the end of March 2024, when, after several months of political struggle within his coalition and the people he led by appointed Jasna Dokić, duly signed all official documents from workers' salaries to utilities, fees for schoolchildren, scholarships...

Although he was even ready to temporarily step down from the position of the President of the Municipality, which even his elder son Balša Božović told the councilors of the former single DF during the assembly session, the Municipal Assembly did not adopt that decision.

Namely, that March 22, before midnight, the President of the Municipal Assembly, Nikola Jovanović, interrupted the session of the local parliament, when Nikola Kralj, president of the newly formed club "For the Future of Budva NSD PZP", said that he would vote against the decision to remove the President of the Municipality of Budva, Milo Božović. from the function.

While the councilors of the faction led by Nikola Jovanović were talking and justifying why the decision had to be voted on, at the end of the discussion the King surprised the new club with a decision.

"There is no theoretical chance that someone would play with us like this", said Jovanović at the time.

Previously, Božović's coalition was divided into two councilor clubs, one of ten councilors "For the future of Budva NSD PZP", led by Nikola Kralj, and the other "Our city, our house, our family" whose president is Mirjana Gregović, and which includes President of the SO Nikola Jovanović.

That was a prelude to shortening the mandate of the parliament, after which President Jakov Milatović announced local elections in Budva for the end of May.

And the fact that he was not temporarily removed from work, which was insisted on by the Government, which was one of the conditions for the Municipal Assembly to adopt, in order not to introduce forced administration in the metropolis of tourism, Božović was left with the fact that he receives the entire amount of salary every month. The decision on temporary removal stipulated that the employee (Milo Božović) has the right to compensation in the amount of one half of the monthly salary he earned in the month before the temporary removal.

The fact that the Assembly of the Municipality of Budva did not temporarily suspend the detained President of the Municipality of Budva, Milo Božović, is "worrying". This is the position of the Ministry of Public Administration submitted to "Vijesti" at the beginning of April, which has never been advertised since then.

"From the documentation that was submitted to this body, it appears that the president of the Budva Municipality Assembly convened two sessions with items on the agenda: the proposal of the Decision on the adoption of the Strategic Development Plan of the Municipality of Budva 2024-2028. year, a proposal for a decision on giving consent to the appointment of the vice-president of the Municipality of Budva, a proposal for a decision on the removal from office of the president of the Municipality of Budva. Since the Budva Municipal Assembly failed to fulfill all obligations from the Decision on warning the Government, they adopted the Decision on shortening the mandate of the Municipal Assembly. Consequently, the Budva Municipal Assembly was not dissolved because the mandate was shortened and elections were called," the government department told "Vijesti" at the time.

That Božović is still the president, that is, that his signature is still crucial, was clear last month, when vice-president Dokić did not sign the contract with her family's company due to a conflict of interest, so the documents were again forwarded to the first man of Budva in Spuz.

In any case, until a new President of the Municipality is appointed, and as things are now, it is difficult to reach an agreement on the formation of a new majority, Božović will still officially be the President of the Municipality and will continue the mandate given to him by the citizens of Budva.