Although 8 out of 15 days of the opposition MPs' ban from the plenary assembly hall have expired, none of their parties have revealed how they will act during the remainder of the "punishment" imposed on them by the head of parliament. Andrija Mandic, nor whether they will come to vote, what they are entitled to, nor whether their representatives who are not sanctioned will attend the discussions.
The Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and the Social Democrats (SD) unofficially told "Vijesti" that a large number of opposition MPs were out of the country last week, and that the meeting of opposition parties, at which they were supposed to discuss further moves, was supposed to be held the day before yesterday, but was postponed.
The Civic Movement (GP) told the URA newspaper that their position is that they will not attend the vote for now, until the fifteen-day measure expires.
At the session of the collegium of the President of the Assembly, held last Monday, Mandić ordered the majority of opposition representatives to be removed from the plenary hall because they had recently prevented the holding of a session at which decisions were to be made on the state treasury.
This decision was overturned Boris Mugoš from the Social Democrats (SD), This is the law., Nikola Janović, Nikola Milović i Nikola Rakočević from DPS, Mehmed Zenka from the Democratic Union of Albanians, and independent MPs Jevrosim Pejović i Radinka Ćinćur.
"Vijesti" tried to contact most of the MPs who were not given a measure, to ask them about their further actions, but they did not return calls.
MP Pejović, who participates in the work of the Parliament, the day before yesterday characterized the "lack of reaction of the opposition" as cooperation between DPS and Mandić's New Serbian Democracy, "which was crowned with the final transaction - 'you give us Budva, and we will turn a blind eye to the adoption of the budget and state borrowing'".
According to Article 109 of the Rules of Procedure, a measure of suspension is imposed on a parliamentarian who obstructs work or does not respect the decision of the President of the Assembly to deprive him of the floor. Additionally, Article 110a states that the measure of suspension applies for the next 15 days of the Assembly session (work), from the day the measure is imposed.
"By way of exception to paragraph 2 of this Article, a deputy who is removed from a session of the Assembly has the right to attend the session when voting is taking place," the Rules of Procedure state, among other things.
However, none of the opposition MPs exercised their right to press the button when voting.
Considering that the measure was imposed the previous Monday (February 3), and that since that day the plenary session has been held on eight different days, the opposition MPs have seven more days left in the highest legislative chamber before their "sentence" expires.
The first extraordinary session ended yesterday, so the seven-day sentence will “spill over” into subsequent extraordinary sessions. One of them is scheduled for February 20, when MPs will discuss the formation of a committee of inquiry and the launch of a parliamentary investigation into politically motivated murders since the introduction of multi-party politics, as well as physical attacks on journalists and other free intellectuals by police officers known as the “black three.”
A new session will be held a day later, on February 21st, with 11 items on the agenda. The opposition claims that the Constitution has been violated because the parliament, without the mandatory notification of the Constitutional Court, decided in mid-December last year to Dragani Đuranović states the termination of the judicial function in that court, due to the attainment of the conditions for retirement. They demanded that things be returned to "the previous state", stating that, otherwise, they would not allow the highest legislative house to work.
On the same day that Mandić announced the measures, the session continued after representatives of the ruling majority entered the hall through one of its side entrances. In front of it, as well as at the other entrances, there was a reinforced presence of parliamentary security (police officers), who were there to allow the opposition members who had been ordered to leave to enter the hall. Vijesti reporters recorded two such attempts, and they passed without incident.
The assembly continued to sit after that, but still none of the opposition members who had been ordered to leave tried to enter the hall.
The reason for the easing of tensions could be that Mandić's alliance "For the Future of Budva", after obstructions, allowed a change of government in that municipality, i.e. the return of DPS to its leadership after eight years.
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