"Do as Milošević would do, call elections"

The leader of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) Ivica Dacic said that he would call early elections, if he were the President Boris Tadic. He made the comments on Wednesday as opposition SNS leader Tomislav Nikolic continued his hunger strike, demanding early elections. "Do as Milosevic would do, call elections" Tadic is also at the helm of the ruling Democrats (DS). Dacic, his coalition partner who holds interior ministry portfolio and is PM's deputy, said that elections should be called "because an impression was being made on purpose that the authorities feared them". “I think that this toying and auctioning with the date leads to a conclusion that Tadic fears of the elections. I know how (former SPS leader and President Slobodan) Milosevic did it. Whenever somebody demanded early elections, he would say: ‘Ok, here are the elections’ and he would win. I would do the same,” Dacic said and added that it was his “personal point of view”. Dacic elaborated that the impression that Tadic and the authority feared of the elections was made deliberately, in order to make him to -due to the very auctioning and making of wrong impression – “do it just like Milosevic would do” and call the early elections and win at them. “But, even if Tadic called the elections, then probably the ones, who demand the early elections to be held, would mind something else, because European integration could be threatened by that,” Dacic said. He said that parties’ interests were not important, but the interest of Serbia, “and the interest of Serbia is to get the EU member country candidate status and the date when the talks will begin, but these could not be without political stability.” “The European partners emphasize the same thing and therefore it is logical the date, when the elections will be held, to be set in a manner that would not jeopardize Serbia’s European integration process in any way,” Dacic said. Dacic also stated that he had not taken part in the talks between SNS and DS. He added that the two parties had the same stance on the two key issues – to get the EU member-country candidate status and to start the talks on membership with the EU. “I haven’t taken part in that talks, so I don’t know what the solution could be. I suggested to all sides that it is beyond debate the elections to be held before the end of this year, but also that there should be room to raise a question which should be debated with the European partners whether the right time to call the elections is before Serbia gets the candidate status or after it as well as that the problem should not be whether the elections are going to be called in October or in December,” he said. Ivica Dacic

"Do as Milošević would do, call elections"

Tadić is also at the helm of the ruling Democrats (DS).

Dačić, his coalition partner who holds interior ministry portfolio and is PM's deputy, said that elections should be called "because an impression was being made on purpose that the authorities feared them".

“I think that this toying and auctioning with the date leads to a conclusion that Tadić fears of the elections. I know how (former SPS leader and President Slobodan) Milošević did it. Whenever somebody demanded early elections, he would say: ‘Ok, here are the elections’ and he would win. I would do the same,” Dačić said and added that it was his “personal point of view”.

Dačić elaborated that the impression that Tadić and the authority feared of the elections was made deliberately, in order to make him to -due to the very auctioning and making of wrong impression – “do it just like Milošević would do” and call the early elections and win at them.

“But, even if Tadić called the elections, then probably the ones, who demand the early elections to be held, would mind something else, because European integration could be threatened by that,” Dačić said.

He said that parties’ interests were not important, but the interest of Serbia, “and the interest of Serbia is to get the EU member country candidate status and the date when the talks will begin, but these could not be without political stability.” “The European partners emphasize the same thing and therefore it is logical the date, when the elections will be held, to be set in a manner that would not jeopardize Serbia’s European integration process in any way,” Dačić said.

Dačić also stated that he had not taken part in the talks between SNS and DS. He added that the two parties had the same stance on the two key issues – to get the EU member-country candidate status and to start the talks on membership with the EU.

“I haven’t taken part in that talks, so I don’t know what the solution could be. I suggested to all sides that it is beyond debate the elections to be held before the end of this year, but also that there should be room to raise a question which should be debated with the European partners whether the right time to call the elections is before Serbia gets the candidate status or after it as well as that the problem should not be whether the elections are going to be called in October or in December,” he said.