Parliament dismisses Šćekić from the position of Minister of Sports and Youth

Dragoslav Šćekić was unanimously dismissed from his position as Minister of Sports and Youth today in the Parliament.

44 MPs voted for this decision.

Minister without portfolio Milutin Butorović explained before the vote that it was a political decision that came about due to respect for the coalition agreement.

In early November, the head of the Socialist People's Party (SNP), Vladimir Joković, officially asked Prime Minister Milojko Spajić to propose the dismissal of the Minister of Sports and former SNP vice president Dragoslav Šćekić, who had left the party.

In his letter to Spajic, Joković pointed out that the agreement on the constitution of the 44th Government stipulated that the SNP would propose two candidates for ministers - in the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management and the Ministry of Sports and Youth.

Joković, who is the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management, informed Spajić that Šćekić was no longer a member of the SNP and that the ministerial position belonged to that party, asking him to make a replacement. He added that he would provide him with the name of the candidate for the position of Minister of Sports at a later date.

At the end of August, shortly before Šćekić left the party, Joković said in an interview with "Vijesti" that anyone who is not part of the SNP cannot hold any office on behalf of the party.

Šćekić announced the formation of a new party after the SNP congress held on August 30th.

He had originally run for president of the SNP, but withdrew his candidacy a few days before the congress. At that time, in an interview with "Vijesti", criticizing Joković, he said that the congress was "pre-arranged and privatized", saying that if Spajić accepted Joković's "blackmailing request" not to be in the government (which was not made official at the time), he would respect that kind of decision.

Šćekić then formed the People's Trust Movement (PNP), to which some former SNP councilors from several local parliaments joined.