The Europe Now Movement (PES) plans to discuss with partners from the Podgorica government the possible threat to the survival of the ruling coalition in the capital after Free Montenegro left it, and the Democratic People's Party (DNP) announced that it could do the same.
PES announced to "Vijesti" that they will talk to all parties that make up the local government, including the DNP, which is threatening to leave it. However, they did not specify when the talks should begin.
"Given the electoral support and responsibility we bear, PES has an obligation to act as a pillar of stability for the government in Podgorica and to ensure the smooth functioning of the city. First of all, we will conduct talks within the coalition, with the partners with whom we have been in power since the end of 2024," the Prime Minister's party told the editorial board. Milojko Spajić, adding that the coalition's common policy must be built and agreed upon in Podgorica, "and not at other addresses."
PES stated that they provide full support to the Mayor of Podgorica and their official. To Saša Mujović, who, they claim, has shown that he knows "how to responsibly and decisively fight for the key interests of the capital, guided by public interest, not political calculations."
They state that they are guided by their program principles and coalition agreement, and that they will not deviate from “that path.” They note that anyone who wants to work with them “on good terms” is welcome, and that anyone who doesn't want to, that's their decision.
When asked whether they would talk to opposition parties, or seek their support in the event that the survival of the ruling majority was threatened, PES responded that they would "monitor the development of the situation and act exclusively in the interests of the citizens of Podgorica, without blackmail or unprincipled arrangements."
"Podgorica must move forward, and we will maintain that course," they said.
“Flimsy” majority
Slobodna's decision to leave power due to Mujović's move to suspend its leader Vladislav Dajković With the position of Head of the Citizens' Service, the Podgorica majority has fallen to the minimum support needed to remain, i.e. to 30 "hands" in the city parliament (Slobodna has one councilor).
If DNP goes the same way Milan Knežević, who threatens to leave the government if it does not start the story about their three "identity" demands, the government in Podgorica will "fall", unless the opposition comes to the aid of the rest of the ruling coalition.
The DNP opposes the construction of a wastewater treatment plant (collector) in the Zeta settlement of Botun, whose residents have been protesting for several months and recently blocked roads because of it. They claim that the collector could endanger health, land and the environment, while the Podgorica and state authorities say that the construction of the plant is necessary and that it will “reduce pollution and improve the quality of life of citizens.”
The DNP Presidency has tasked its members Milun Zogović (Deputy Prime Minister) and Maja Vukicevic (Minister of Transport) to present demands at the first session of the executive branch, including, in addition to the dialogue on Botun, the initiative to have the Serbian language standardized in the Constitution as an official language, amendments to the Law on Citizenship in order to introduce dual citizenship with Serbia, and the introduction of the tricolor as the national flag. If they do not receive support for this in the Government, they have announced their resignations and the denial of support for Spajić and Mujović.
The day before yesterday, while appearing on the show "Reflektor" on Television Vijesti, Vukićević said that the DNP is closer to leaving the government than staying, and that it will not wait indefinitely for the executive branch to respond to its demands.
The capital city assembly has 59 councilors, and the formation of a city government requires the support of at least 30 of them, which is how many there are currently. The ruling majority in Podgorica, until Slobodna's decision, consisted of 31 councilors: the PES-Democrats alliance with 14 representatives, the parties of the former Democratic Front (of which DNP is a part) with smaller partners have 13 councilors, and the Movement for Podgorica, close to the head of state Jakov Milatović four. With the exit of the DNP, which has four representatives (by agreement with Prava Crna Gora, they have since gained a fourth), from the city government, the ruling coalition would be “reduced” to 26 councilors, and would have to, if it does not want to hold early elections, seek the support of at least four opposition representatives in order to “survive”.
In that case, they need the support of two opposition parties, not counting the strongest - the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), which can hardly be part of such an arrangement. All they have to do is negotiate with the Civic Movement (GP) URA Dritan Abazović, Party of European Progress (SEP) Duško Marković or with the Turnover movement Srdjan Perić, which have two councilors each in the Podgorica Assembly, and with the European Union, which has three.
However, the DNP's exit from power would not mean its automatic fall, even if no "replacement" was found for them. In order for the government to be overthrown, the mandate of the local parliament would have to be shortened or Mujović would have to be dismissed. The party of Vladislav Dajković (who was suspended because he was at a protest in Botun during working hours) announced the possibility of launching such initiatives the day before yesterday, but only after talks with the DNP.
The opposition does not want to "patch up" the government
Opposition parties told "Vijesti" yesterday that they have not considered joining the Podgorica government. They also claim that they have not received any offers in this regard, saying that Podgorica needs political stability or a new administration "derived from the electoral will of the citizens." Some of these parties claim that they would not support possible initiatives by Slobodna.
The first DPS leader in the city parliament Andrija Klikovac, told the editorial staff that they had not considered what might happen if the DNP were to leave power.
"We do not believe that they will leave power. You know that DNP and Knežević have already announced various exits from the Government of Montenegro and the authorities several times...", he reminded, adding that DPS's entry into power in the capital depends on the citizens.
"DPS will always do what is in the interest of the citizens of Podgorica, as well as the development of the city itself. It will do everything to start and complete those capital projects that are most important for Podgorica to be one of the capitals of the EU," said Klikovac.
Commenting on Slobodna's announcement that it would launch an initiative to remove Mujović, the interviewee said that nothing has been delivered to the councilors' clubs in the capital's Assembly so far.
Councillor of the European Union Miloš Djurickovic, told "Vijesti" that the councilors' club had not spoken with government representatives about the possibility of joining it and that the ruling coalition "had not offered them anything."
"This topic has never been discussed in party bodies, so I cannot state the official position of the party. My personal opinion is that the citizens of Podgorica deserve a new government, primarily one that they gave majority support to in the last elections, and which, paradoxically, they lost after the elections," explained Đuričković.
SEP reminds us that "with their recognizable role as a constructive factor, they base their actions on a professional and programmatic approach, not a political one."
"We neither asked for nor were we offered participation in government. We did not negotiate about that," said the list from Duško Marković's party.
They recalled that they had expressed their position on the burning issue (the collector), "which is already leading to disagreements in the local government", clearly and repeatedly, giving support to "those forces that care about the development of Podgorica through the simultaneous protection of citizens' health and environmental preservation, which would not be possible without the construction of a wastewater treatment plant in Botun".
They emphasized that their role will always be reflected "through the prism of contributions and the achievement of their program goals, which citizens recognized and supported in the Podgorica elections."
"Mr. Dajković's initiative and in general initiatives coming from parties of this profile and this approach to politics do not currently occupy our attention, because, unfortunately, we do not recognize anything useful and significant in them for citizens, the capital and society as a whole," the SEP said.
Councilor and leader of the Upheaval Srdjan Peric, stated in a post on the social network Facebook that his party will not enter government and "will not patch, bridge, or bypass the majority in Podgorica."
He also assessed that the talk of shortening the mandate of the Assembly and dismissing Mujović was "out of place", recalling that elections in Podgorica are scheduled for June 2027, and that the Government can dissolve the local parliament if it does not hold sessions for longer than six months and appoint a board of trustees, and that such a situation could last until next year's elections.
He reminds us that everyone in the government voted together on the local budget that provides for a collector in Botun, and with DPS, an increase in councilors' fees.
"Vijesti" expects answers from GP URA to the questions of whether they were discussed with them about possibly entering government, if so, what was offered to them, whether they would enter it and under what conditions, and whether they would vote for the removal of the mayor and shortening the mandate of the local parliament.
Šušić: There will be no offer for the opposition, this majority should continue to work
The head of the councilors' club of the ruling New Serbian Democracy (NSD) Mitar Šušić told "Vijesti" that "we should not look for additional actors in the crisis, but rather focus on how to overcome the crisis."
"The fact is that our coalition partners from the DNP have expressed certain positions and put forward some political demands with which we largely agree, but I think we need to find a way for the functioning of this local government to continue normally, in the interests of the citizens. I don't know if the opposition parties are interested (in entering government), because they don't have any offer from our side at the moment, nor will they have one because I believe that it is not necessary," he said.
Šušić stated that the local government "will certainly continue to function normally" until there are legal reasons for shortening the mandate or holding new elections, for which, he says, there is no reason from a political perspective.
“I think they would be very politically damaging to those entities that would lead to an election,” he added.
Šušić reminds that the elections are scheduled for June next year, and that "this year we have an obligation to deliver results and implement projects" and that "all constituents of the current ruling majority should participate in this."
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