Deputy PMs join Tadić in criticism of government

Deputy prime ministers Ivica Dacic and Mladjan Dinkic agree with President Boris Tadic that certain ministers are not doing their job well. Just a day after the president criticized work of some unnamed government ministers, the two deputy PMs made the same observations. Deputy PMs join Tadic in criticism of government Dacic and Dinkic admit they are not satisfied with the performance of all the departments in the cabinet, but claim that the portfolios ran by their respective parties – the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) and G17 Plus – are in fact successful. Dacic, who is interior minister first deputy to PM Mirko Cvetkovic and – believes that a reshuffle of the government is in order, and says every minister should know that this is their "role of a lifetime”. “I am sure that we need a reconstruction of the government, but I do not want to appraise the work of others,” said he. Dacic added that the coalition government had not discussed letting in "new partners", while should some of the ministers have to go – "that will certainly be the agreement". “There's no fighting over that. I see Tadic’s position as well-meant criticism and every minister should be told what they should do in order to improve their work,” he said. Meanwhile, Dinkic, who besides one of the deputy PM spots also hold the economy portfolio in the current cabinet – made it known on Friday that he agrees with the president’s evaluation. “It also think there are some ministers who are not doing their job well and I support what the president said,” Dinkic told reporters after a government session today. But he went on to say that he did not think he was one of the ministers the president was referring to, and added that Tadic had publically praised his work at the opening of the Leoni factory in Prokuplje on Thursday. The media, Dinkic added, failed to report that detail. One minister who would not give appraisals of his fellow cabinet members' performance was Labor Minister Rasim Ljajic. He did however say that it would be good to scale down the number of ministries. Ljajic also did not think he was at the receiving end of Tadic's criticism. “I did not recognize myself in the president’s statement simply because I can neither do more, nor better,” he told reporters in parliament on Friday. As for the idea to reduce the number of ministries, Ljajic said it would be politically useful and economically justified, adding that it would "even be important from the psychological point of view".

Deputy PMs join Tadić in criticism of government

Dačić and Dinkić admit they are not satisfied with the performance of all the departments in the cabinet, but claim that the portfolios ran by their respective parties – the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) and G17 Plus – are in fact successful.

Dačić, who is interior minister first deputy to PM Mirko Cvetković and – believes that a reshuffle of the government is in order, and says every minister should know that this is their "role of a lifetime”.

“I am sure that we need a reconstruction of the government, but I do not want to appraise the work of others,” said he.

Dačić added that the coalition government had not discussed letting in "new partners", while should some of the ministers have to go – "that will certainly be the agreement".

“There's no fighting over that. I see Tadić’s position as well-meant criticism and every minister should be told what they should do in order to improve their work,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dinkić, who besides one of the deputy PM spots also hold the economy portfolio in the current cabinet – made it known on Friday that he agrees with the president’s evaluation.

“It also think there are some ministers who are not doing their job well and I support what the president said,” Dinkić told reporters after a government session today.

But he went on to say that he did not think he was one of the ministers the president was referring to, and added that Tadić had publically praised his work at the opening of the Leoni factory in Prokuplje on Thursday.

The media, Dinkić added, failed to report that detail.

One minister who would not give appraisals of his fellow cabinet members' performance was Labor Minister Rasim Ljajić. He did however say that it would be good to scale down the number of ministries.

Ljajić also did not think he was at the receiving end of Tadić's criticism.

“I did not recognize myself in the president’s statement simply because I can neither do more, nor better,” he told reporters in parliament on Friday.

As for the idea to reduce the number of ministries, Ljajić said it would be politically useful and economically justified, adding that it would "even be important from the psychological point of view".