“Ruling structures in Vojvodina will be changed”

BELGRADE Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) deputy leader Dusan Bajatovic has announced that the local authorities in Vojvodina will change. “After the forming of the authorities in Vojvodina, there is no longer the Socialist Party of Serbia-Democratic Party bloc that was the connecting tissue for political decision making in Vojvodina,” he told reporters in the Serbian parliament. “Ruling structures in Vojvodina will be changed” The SPS official said that the SPS, Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) and United Regions of Serbia (URS) and other parties of the new ruling majority wanted to “harmonize the local authorities with the political will that exists in entire Serbia”. He pointed out that changes would take place in every town where it was possible. Bajatovic added that he did not want to speculate in which towns changes could happen. He underscored that one should bear in mind the best interest of the people living in those towns and that “it is not a matter of mathematics”. “Wherever we asses that it is a rational thing to do, it will probably happen,” the SPS deputy leader explained. URS leader Mladjan Dinkic told Novi Sad-based daily Dnevnik that the current local authority in Novi Sad was not certain. “It is true that a possibility of recomposing the city authorities in Novi Sad is being discussed while something like that is not being discussed when it comes to Belgrade because the situation is dramatically different there,” he said and announced the change of local authority in the northern town of Sombor as well. DS deputy leader and Vojvodina Executive Council President Bojan Pajtic said that not a single problem in Serbia would be solved by destabilizing local self-governments or buying councilors. He stressed that a person whose first priority was to fight against political opponents instead to solve the citizens’ problems would not last long. Novi Sad Mayor Igor Pavlicic noted that he personally trusted his current coalition partners. The DS, League of Social Democrats of Vojvodina (LSV) and SPS-led coalition formed the city authorities in Novi Sad. The DS has 18 councilors, LSV 15 and SPS-led coalition seven. The coalition has 40 out of 78 seats in the city assembly. The SNS has 15 seats, Roma Democratic Party six, Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS), Serb Radical Party (SRS) and Dveri five each, while the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians (SVM) and None of the Above have one seat each. The DS formed the Vojvodina government without the SPS after the Socialists had decided to form the Serbian government with the SNS and URS. Center for Regionalism Director Aleksandar Popov says that such messages are very strange and unusual. “It is really odd that the announcement is coming from Dinkic. It is possible that this is his personal revenge against the Democrats because they did not want to accept him in the coalition at the republic level when there were the first talks between the DS and SPS,” he explained. Dusan Bajatovic (Tanjug, file) B92

“Ruling structures in Vojvodina will be changed”

The SPS official said that the SPS, Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) and United Regions of Serbia (URS) and other parties of the new ruling majority wanted to “harmonize the local authorities with the political will that exists in entire Serbia”.

He pointed out that changes would take place in every town where it was possible. Bajatović added that he did not want to speculate in which towns changes could happen.

He underscored that one should bear in mind the best interest of the people living in those towns and that “it is not a matter of mathematics”.

“Wherever we asses that it is a rational thing to do, it will probably happen,” the SPS deputy leader explained.

URS leader Mlađan Dinkić told Novi Sad-based daily Dnevnik that the current local authority in Novi Sad was not certain.

“It is true that a possibility of recomposing the city authorities in Novi Sad is being discussed while something like that is not being discussed when it comes to Belgrade because the situation is dramatically different there,” he said and announced the change of local authority in the northern town of Sombor as well.

DS deputy leader and Vojvodina Executive Council President Bojan Pajtić said that not a single problem in Serbia would be solved by destabilizing local self-governments or buying councilors.

He stressed that a person whose first priority was to fight against political opponents instead to solve the citizens’ problems would not last long.

Novi Sad Mayor Igor Pavličić noted that he personally trusted his current coalition partners.

The DS, League of Social Democrats of Vojvodina (LSV) and SPS-led coalition formed the city authorities in Novi Sad.

The DS has 18 councilors, LSV 15 and SPS-led coalition seven. The coalition has 40 out of 78 seats in the city assembly.

The SNS has 15 seats, Roma Democratic Party six, Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS), Serb Radical Party (SRS) and Dveri five each, while the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians (SVM) and None of the Above have one seat each.

The DS formed the Vojvodina government without the SPS after the Socialists had decided to form the Serbian government with the SNS and URS.

Center for Regionalism Director Aleksandar Popov says that such messages are very strange and unusual.

“It is really odd that the announcement is coming from Dinkić. It is possible that this is his personal revenge against the Democrats because they did not want to accept him in the coalition at the republic level when there were the first talks between the DS and SPS,” he explained.