Rakočević: The time has come for both government and opposition MPs to declare whether they are in favor of open lists

Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) MP Nikola Rakočević said that the time has come "for real electoral reform" - for MPs from both the government and the opposition to declare whether they are in favor of open lists or not.

"Citizens asked for open lists, and DPS has proposed a law that offers citizens open lists in the upcoming local and parliamentary elections. There is no more mimicry, no more political pretense in the Montenegrin parliament. MPs from both the government and the opposition will have to clearly state whether they are in favor of opening the electoral lists, for citizens to vote for those they believe will best represent them in parliament, or they want the continuation of the party-based system based on the principle that the leadership of political parties chooses who will represent the citizens," he said.

As he explained, they proposed a solution whereby citizens would be able to vote for one list, and within it, they could select up to 10 candidates in the parliamentary elections, or up to five in the local elections.

"It is a system that will protect the underrepresented gender, because regardless of the nominal number of votes, every third MP, or every third candidate, will be a woman," he added.

He announced that a public debate on this topic would begin this week, but that he would also invite all relevant representatives of the academic community, the non-governmental sector, the media community, and institutions dealing with elections.

"I assume and count that after 20 days we will have suggestions from the non-governmental sector and all interested parties and will have the opportunity to put it on the agenda. MPs will have to declare whether they are in favor of open lists or not."

When asked whether, in his opinion, there is a will in the parliamentary majority to adopt this proposal, Rakočević answered negatively.

"We believe that they are not ready to expose themselves to the judgment of the citizens of Montenegro. Especially those who manage processes on behalf of the parties in power. They believe that they have not passed the test with the citizens of Montenegro. If this is not true, they will support our law," he said, adding that they are "increasing the criticism to take them to the field."

When asked why the Electoral Reform Committee did not deliver certain results, he replied that it did - a professional Central Election Commission (CEC), elections in one day, a higher quota for women in parliament, but that it stopped because the majority did not want to go any further.

"Continuing work in that committee would be a simulation of democracy, because the government in the final phase of Montenegro's entry into the EU does not want to talk to the opposition, but to make decisions on its own. They wanted the electoral reform to be held hostage by the committee. As you know, all decisions in the committee had to be made by consensus, so it was enough for one party to be against open lists for that proposal not to come to parliament. In this way, we decided to make a real electoral reform," he said.

When asked how he would treat the issue of minorities, he said that affirmative action already exists, but that representatives of minority parties are welcome to attend a public debate and present their proposals on this issue.

Rakočević did not have an answer to the question of whether the budget of the Bijelo Polje municipality would be adopted tomorrow.

When asked by reporters whether he would have a meeting with EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos, who is arriving on Wednesday, Rakočević said that if they had the opportunity to talk to her, they would express the concerns of the opposition and part of the public about the government's behavior, but that they would express their opinion on the progress of European integration and why they left their positions in parliament. He also said that he would inform her about his activities regarding electoral legislation.