Tadić calls for "socially responsible government"

Democratic Party (DS) leader Boris Tadic says a coalition between the SRS, the SPS, and the DSS-NS would lead to incoherent and anti-national policies. He said that he believed that the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) would not countenance such irresponsibility. Tadic calls for "socially responsible government" “This coalition that’s being talked about at Belgrade and state level will not help extract the country from its long-running crisis, and we would be back to dealing with problems from the 1990s,” Tadic told the FoNet news agency. “I am not saying that anyone would build walls around Serbia,” said the president, adding that that would not be necessary, because Serbia would do that itself. That coalition would lead to anti-national policies, he explained, pointing out that a real national government would lead Serbia towards EU membership, and thus finally solve the Serbian national question. Serbia does not need “a national or pro-European government, those are the wrong names,” Tadic said, adding that “we need a socially responsible government, because such a government is both national and pro-European.” The DS leader said that a socially responsible government would apply real policies, set high political goals, and be prepared to respond to all challenges. He said that he saw the Hungarian coalition, the SPS, the Associated Pensioners’ Party (PUPS), United Serbia (JS) and the “Bosniak List for a European Serbia” as his partners in a government. Tadic said that he still had not ruled out the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) as a potential partner, provided they returned to their European policies, though he stressed that DSS leader Vojislav Kostunica could not be prime minister again. As the leader of the “For a European Serbia” list, the president said that he would announce his party’s candidate for prime minister once it became clear which parties would be in the government, and under what conditions they would be willing to form a coalition. “This is very important, because the prime minister must be able to unite all the parties in government. I would then discuss the candidate with all the coalition partners,” he said. As far as the importance of forming a government both in Belgrade and at state level was concerned, Tadic said that the two had to “go hand in hand.” “This is a position based on principle, and I think that a coherent government at state level, in the cities of Belgrade, Nis, and Novi Sad, and in local administrations and provinces would lead Serbia towards EU membership, would strengthen the economy, and would lead to socially responsible policies,” said the DS leader. He cited the SPS as a natural partner for achieving national reconciliation, because these two parties, Tadic said, were Serbia's authentic representatives, pre- and post-2000. “In the DS led by Zoran Djindjic, there was an idea to form a united government in 1993. That idea fell through, and Serbia looked a lot worse then. It might have been better if a national and political agreement had been reached back then,” Tadic said. He said that talks between his list and the SPS would begin once the SPS finished the talks it was currently involved in, or parallel to them, if the SPS wanted to work that way. The president said that calling new parliamentary elections would be an inferior solution to forming a government that pursued socially responsible policies. He said that he would never put his party role ahead of his duties as president, and that whoever formed a parliamentary majority would form a government. Boris Tadic (FoNet, archive)

Tadić calls for "socially responsible government"

“This coalition that’s being talked about at Belgrade and state level will not help extract the country from its long-running crisis, and we would be back to dealing with problems from the 1990s,” Tadić told the FoNet news agency.

“I am not saying that anyone would build walls around Serbia,” said the president, adding that that would not be necessary, because Serbia would do that itself.

That coalition would lead to anti-national policies, he explained, pointing out that a real national government would lead Serbia towards EU membership, and thus finally solve the Serbian national question.

Serbia does not need “a national or pro-European government, those are the wrong names,” Tadić said, adding that “we need a socially responsible government, because such a government is both national and pro-European.”

The DS leader said that a socially responsible government would apply real policies, set high political goals, and be prepared to respond to all challenges.

He said that he saw the Hungarian coalition, the SPS, the Associated Pensioners’ Party (PUPS), United Serbia (JS) and the “Bosniak List for a European Serbia” as his partners in a government.

Tadić said that he still had not ruled out the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) as a potential partner, provided they returned to their European policies, though he stressed that DSS leader Vojislav Koštunica could not be prime minister again.

As the leader of the “For a European Serbia” list, the president said that he would announce his party’s candidate for prime minister once it became clear which parties would be in the government, and under what conditions they would be willing to form a coalition.

“This is very important, because the prime minister must be able to unite all the parties in government. I would then discuss the candidate with all the coalition partners,” he said.

As far as the importance of forming a government both in Belgrade and at state level was concerned, Tadić said that the two had to “go hand in hand.”

“This is a position based on principle, and I think that a coherent government at state level, in the cities of Belgrade, Niš, and Novi Sad, and in local administrations and provinces would lead Serbia towards EU membership, would strengthen the economy, and would lead to socially responsible policies,” said the DS leader.

He cited the SPS as a natural partner for achieving national reconciliation, because these two parties, Tadić said, were Serbia's authentic representatives, pre- and post-2000.

“In the DS led by Zoran Đinđić, there was an idea to form a united government in 1993. That idea fell through, and Serbia looked a lot worse then. It might have been better if a national and political agreement had been reached back then,” Tadić said.

He said that talks between his list and the SPS would begin once the SPS finished the talks it was currently involved in, or parallel to them, if the SPS wanted to work that way.

The president said that calling new parliamentary elections would be an inferior solution to forming a government that pursued socially responsible policies.

He said that he would never put his party role ahead of his duties as president, and that whoever formed a parliamentary majority would form a government.