Pundits: Elections unlikely in 2009

Even with internal struggle within the government recently, Blic daily's editor-in-chief Veselin Simonovic does not believe there will be elections in 2009. The clash between the defense minister and army chief of the general staff is one of several occurring in the government recently. Pundits: Elections unlikely in 2009 There were also conflicts between Economy Minister and G17 leader Mladjan Dinkic and the cabinet after which he left a negotiation team set up for the sale of NIS to Gazprom. But Simonovic told B92 TV that he does not believe that these fall outs will lead to early elections next year. “I do not think that elections are in anyone’s interest. There is not enough money in the budget for that,” Simonovic believes. “I think that those who are financing parties will have great problems next year and that they will not be able to secure finances for campaigns. And parties spend a lot,” he added. “I also think that they do not know how long the crisis will last. Maybe they are hoping that it will last half a year, and then it will be easier to announce elections. I think that the crisis will last a little longer,” Simonovic said. Even though he does not believe that Serbians will go to the polls next year, Vreme weekly editor-in-chief Dragoljub Zarkovic, who took part in the same program, said that new elections would be good for Serbia. “We do not have a regular parliamentary scene. There was a division in a party that was led by the program of Vojislav Seselj, by his slogans – some like them, some don’t, but they won seats [in parliament]. Now, we have one faction that has no confirmation,” he said, referring to the split within the Serb Radical Party (SRS). “They waste parliamentary time with their own arguments," Zarkovic said of the Radicals and offshoot Serb Progressive Party (SNS) MPs. "We notice that in the last two-three votes there have been problems with the so-called parliamentary majority on which the government is based." "So, in parliament, which is the essence of political organization and gives legitimacy to the government, there is a problem. That is why I think that elections would be a good thing,” Zarkovic concluded.

Pundits: Elections unlikely in 2009

There were also conflicts between Economy Minister and G17 leader Mlađan Dinkić and the cabinet after which he left a negotiation team set up for the sale of NIS to Gazprom.

But Simonović told B92 TV that he does not believe that these fall outs will lead to early elections next year.

“I do not think that elections are in anyone’s interest. There is not enough money in the budget for that,” Simonović believes.

“I think that those who are financing parties will have great problems next year and that they will not be able to secure finances for campaigns. And parties spend a lot,” he added.

“I also think that they do not know how long the crisis will last. Maybe they are hoping that it will last half a year, and then it will be easier to announce elections. I think that the crisis will last a little longer,” Simonović said.

Even though he does not believe that Serbians will go to the polls next year, Vreme weekly editor-in-chief Dragoljub Žarković, who took part in the same program, said that new elections would be good for Serbia.

“We do not have a regular parliamentary scene. There was a division in a party that was led by the program of Vojislav Šešelj, by his slogans – some like them, some don’t, but they won seats [in parliament]. Now, we have one faction that has no confirmation,” he said, referring to the split within the Serb Radical Party (SRS).

“They waste parliamentary time with their own arguments," Žarković said of the Radicals and offshoot Serb Progressive Party (SNS) MPs. "We notice that in the last two-three votes there have been problems with the so-called parliamentary majority on which the government is based."

"So, in parliament, which is the essence of political organization and gives legitimacy to the government, there is a problem. That is why I think that elections would be a good thing,” Žarković concluded.