Montenegro needs a new governance model, and it implies listening to citizens and trying to help them in every possible way, said the president of the Civic Movement URA, Dritan Abazović.
"Hasn't the bad practice from the previous period taught us that things need to be changed for the better?" asked Abazović.
He called on the government to urgently adopt anti-crisis measures, stating in his podcast "Friday with Dritan" that all announcements, including those from the World Bank, indicate that we are facing a drastic increase in the prices of energy products at the global level, and therefore all other products.
Abazović said that it is the government's obligation to listen to citizens and said that the Ministry of Agriculture ignored the protest of farmers, who were in front of their headquarters.
"I think the government needs to understand that it is there for the citizens. That citizens sometimes have needs that can be processed and sometimes they may be unrealistic. But, whether realistic or unrealistic, it is always the obligation of someone who exercises power to listen to them and give them an accurate answer," he said.
"For me," he added, "it's not at all difficult to talk to people from the local community of Sveti Stefan, from Berane, from Zeta."
"With anyone who thinks we can do something through the state parliament or through some public presentation. And I want us to stop this practice of non-transparency and actions that are swept under the carpet, and end with 'under the table' combinations, and to make things public and to end them the way citizens want it and how they have the opportunity to exercise their rights. I think it is completely inappropriate to talk about how to sell off the most important resources of the state of Montenegro, without anyone having seen the contract about it. It is very ugly to talk about how to concrete Sveti Stefan or build apartments for sale, and for contracts or agreements related to the settlement to be declared secret documents. For something that is in the public good of everyone," added the leader of URE.
Abazović said that the URA has already asked the Government to prepare anti-crisis measures due to the announcement of a drastic increase in energy prices, which will also lead to an increase in the prices of other products.
"We are not giving up on the demand that pensions be increased immediately, this month, by the amount for which there is money in the budget. When it comes to salaries, I once again express my full support to the Union and all employees in general, whether in the public or private sector, that the coefficient be increased as they demand, from 90 to 100 euros, which means that salaries would be a little higher. We need a different economic model, a different economic policy, and URA is the one that is fighting for both higher salaries and higher pensions," said Abazović.
When asked by citizens about the devastation of forests in the north of the country, he said that the URA, while in power, began the fight against the forestry mafia, but that this government is not interested in that.
Abazović said that "Montenegro is losing something most valuable, and that is the forests that need to be preserved for our children and our grandchildren."
"The new government's priority must be the development of infrastructure in the north, which includes the opening of Berane airport, the reconstruction of all roads, including rural ones, which could help us have a faster flow of people and goods and which could also revive the tourism industry," he said.
Abazović also commented on RTCG's announcements about public opinion research.
"It's not that they're talking about how PES has some huge support, and they need it after all that's happening to them and what Medenica and others are telling them in public every day. The goal is to, among other things, hold DPS high so that this unfortunate majority, which is currently in power, can homogenize its people so that they can say: don't, after all, if this continues, DPS will return," added Abazović.
Abazović said that April marked the 43rd anniversary of the government he headed.
"I think it is now clear to everyone why the 43rd government was formed and that it is clear to everyone that there is only one party in Montenegro that is not interested in power, but in true change. Everyone understands that it was impossible to work in those conditions and that there was a government that was completely inclusive and that enabled some major historic decisions for Montenegro to be made," he said.
Abazović said that during his government's mandate, Europol's embargo on data exchange with Montenegro was lifted and that a systematic fight against organized crime and corruption began.
"This is the only government that has not indebted the citizens of Montenegro even a single euro, that has returned state assets such as the ferry, the Steelworks, and shares in the Port of Bar, that has made Elektroprivreda the most profitable, that has managed to resolve some historical issues related to the relations between the state and religious communities in Montenegro, and that has been inclusive," Abazović said.
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