Serbian Army Chief of Staff, Zdravko Ponos, retired professor, Vladeta Jankovic, and a deputy leader of the opposition Party for Freedom and Justice (SSP), Marinika Tepic were officially presented yesterday as candidates for the president, Belgrade Mayor, and the first on a joint list for the upcoming elections.
The electoral list of „Ujedinjena Srbija“ (United Serbia), a rival to SNS and Aleksandar Vucic, will be headed by Serbian Army Chief of Staff, Zdravko Ponos, as a presidential candidate.
Professor Vladeta Jankovic will be the candidate for the mayor of Belgrade, while the first on the list will be Marinika Tepic, whom Ponos himself described as the „bravest politician.“
Tepic emphasized in the Media Center in Belgrade yesterday that every citizen of Serbia is „extremely important“.
Tepic then listed what her priorities will be in case she wins the elections: the establishment of an institution of an anti-corruption prosecutor to monitor the affairs of public officials, special police office that will not answer to the Minister of the Interior, confiscation of illegally acquired property and lustration for those who violated ethics and human rights.
As a guarantor, she enclosed her signature, as well as the signatures of the head of SSP, Dragan Djilas, and the vice presidents of the party, Stefanovic and Bulatovic, by which they officially promised that they will leave politics if they fail to fulfill the mentioned priorities within six months.
Tepic compared the importance of securing ballot boxes during the elections with the situation before the October changes more than 20 years ago, when the citizens of Serbia, as volunteers, stood in line to safeguard the electoral will. She expressed expectations that this will happen once again.
The united opposition insisted that they will govern Serbia as a team, relying on qualified staff. Tepic added that the National Employment Service would do its job and employ Serbian citizens based on their qualifications – not on an SNS membership card.
Ponos stressed that, if they come to power, one of their priorities will be to keep young people in Serbia. He also added that he will give a mandate to the list to form a new government, stressing that he will respect the Constitution.
With it, as he said in today’s interview for Vreme weekly magazine, he became familiar with, rifle in hand, since he was 15 years old.
„The Constitution was with me when I was the Chief of the General Staff. When I am the president of the state, it won’t be the first time that I’m reading it,“ Ponos said, adding:
„By respecting the Constitution, I know what a state is. I respect my people and I know what is sacred. I don’t know everyone, but I know people who know people, who are the best at their job in this country, and I will never sign a law without asking the experts what they think about it. I will respect the Constitution, from the preamble to the last article 206. I will unite Serbia, Serbia will be a home for all of us.“
During yesterday’s address, while listing his priorities, the candidate for mayor of Belgrade, Vladeta Jankovic, highlighted the importance of teamwork.
He stressed that they will govern Belgrade as a team and that there will be no persecution. Furthermore, he specified that his role will only be to coordinate the experts he will invite to help him and communicate with the citizens and the public.
As a priority, he mentioned the re-examination of the subway lines, the revival of the railway station in its old site and Makis.
He also explained how he decided to accept the invitation of the united opposition to run, given his advanced years and the fact he had already withdrawn from political life.
Jankovic reveals he reached the decision to run when he heard on the news that the price per square meter of an apartment in Belgrade Waterfront was higher than €10,000, and that the salaries of cashiers in Maxi Markets were being reduced.
„At that moment, something in my 80-year-old heart broke,“ Jankovic said.
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