Long-time official of the Democratic People's Party (DNP), Dragan Bojović, has resigned "from all party positions except for that of MP," the party announced.
"In a letter he sent by email to the members of the Presidency, as he was the only one who did not attend the last session, Mr. Bojović stated that he did not agree with the unanimous decision to leave the Government, and that the reasons for his leaving the DNP were exclusively strategic in nature," the statement reads.
They said they respect the decision of Bojović, who, in ten years of membership on behalf of the DNP, as they recall, was a member of parliament in two convocations, state secretary at the Ministry of Education, candidate for ambassador to Russia, party vice president, head of the DNP councilors' club, as well as president of the party's municipal committee in Danilovgrad.
"Also, in 2020, DNP deputies supported Mr. Bojović's wife as a non-party figure for a minister in the government of Zdravko Krivokapić, and the DNP twice supported her as the leader of the local electoral list of the ZBPG coalition, and the councilors' club twice for the president of the Capital City Assembly. We wish Mr. Bojović every success in his future life, both personally and politically, and we thank him for his cooperation so far," the DNP announced.
The Democratic People's Party did not make a decision on January 9 to leave power in Podgorica and at the state level, as its leader Milan Knežević had announced, but will present the Government of Milojko Spajić with three "identity" demands that it should fulfill in order for the DNP to remain part of the executive branch.
The DNP presidency has decided that their members, Deputy Prime Minister Milun Zogović and Minister of Transport Maja Vukićević, will "initiate" constitutional changes to standardize the Serbian language as the official language, amendments to the Law on Citizenship, as well as amendments to regulations on state symbols so that the tricolor can be declared the national flag, at the first upcoming session of the executive branch.
The fourth and final conclusion obliges Zogović and Vukićević to initiate a comprehensive dialogue based on the results of the referendum on the construction of a wastewater treatment plant in Botun, "which would take into account the views" of the citizens of Zeta, who said "no" to the construction of the collector on December 14th last year.
If these demands do not receive support from the government, Knežević's party said after the session that Zogović and Vukićević would resign, that the parliamentary group would deny support to Spajić in the state parliament, and to Podgorica Mayor Saša Mujović (Europe Now Movement) in the local parliament.
The statement did not state at the time whether DNP officials in the state and Podgorica authorities would also resign "in depth" if the Government did not accept the party's demands.
When asked by "Vijesti" when the government would have a deadline to respond to their initiative, the DNP reiterated the claim from the statement that the initiative would be proposed at the first regular session of the executive branch, and that, if they do not receive support from the government, Zogović and Vukićević would resign, and the party would withhold support from Spajić and Mujović.
They did not respond to a request for clarification as to whether this means that, if the initiative does not receive support at the first regular session of the Government, they will resign immediately after the end of that session.
Knežević last announced that the DNP would withdraw from the state and Podgorica government on December 30th of last year. After the police in Botun carried out an action that ended a two-month protest by the residents of that Zeta settlement against the plan to build a wastewater treatment plant there, he said that he would propose to the DNP presidency that they withdraw from "this bloody government".
A day later, during the blockade of the roundabout towards Podgorica Airport, Knežević underlined that if the DNP presidency rejects his proposal, he will resign from his parliamentary position and the position of leader of that party.
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