Nenad Zecevic
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić sent one of his key operatives to Budva, a member of the Main Board of the Serbian Progressive Party, Petar Babović, in order to logistically, and probably financially, help the Democratic Front’s campaign in that coastal city, Pobjeda has learned.
The sources of our newspaper announced that Babović, otherwise the head of the Niš district, came to Budva with seven of his associates, thus repeating the scenario from Nikšić a year and a half ago.
PUBLISHED NAMES
The strongest opposition party in Serbia, Dragan Djilas Freedom and Justice Party, announced on Monday that Babovic was accompanied by four of his associates Miroslav Djokic, Dusan Mihajlovic, Olivera Djordjevic and Jelena Denic. All four are employed in the administration of the city of Nis and are local SNS officials.
Pobjeda also sent requests for access to information of public importance to the mayor of Nis and directors of JKP Vodovod, JKP Parking servis and JKP Tržnica asking whether their employees were absent from work in the period of 19. September to 23. September 2022. and on what grounds. Pobjeda expect answers from the authorities, and first of all from the head of the Nišava district, Babović, to explain to the citizens from whom he receives his salary what kind of authority he is referring to, who gave him that authority, because it is not a law, and how far his authority extends, and not to interfere in internal affairs of another state. Pobjeda also expect the prosecution’s reaction.
Petar Babovic must immediately be dismissed from office and be the subject of an investigation – Djilas ‘ party stated, among other things, in a public reaction.
The fact that GO SNS member Petar Babović took the same team is also evidenced by the fact that SNS officials Olivera Đorđević and Jelena Denić, who came to Budva, were already expelled from Montenegro on 29. January 2021. before the local elections in Niksic.
Pobjeda then published that nine Serbian citizens had been expelled for not having temporary residence and work permits, as well as work registration certificates, and that they were all officials of Vucic’s party.
SECOND DELEGATION
This is the second SNS delegation that is staying in Budva ahead of the local elections. The first one – in May – was led by former handball player Vladimir Mandić.
Mandić, who is a member of the Main Board of SNS and a businessman close to Vučić, was then seen in Budva in the company of his friend, former DF deputy Milo Božović, who succeeded Marko Bata Carević.
Mandic’s mission was successful because he reconciled the then quarrelsome leaders of the DF Bozovic and Carevic who, according to the sources of Pobjeda, even physically confronted each other.
Mandic was already involved in the Niksic case when Vucic invested hundreds of thousands of euros in the victory of the Democratic Front by helping that political group financially, logistically, but also in the media – directly interfering in the internal affairs of Montenegro.
Pobjeda, in a series of articles published from January to March 14 last year, exposed the scheme of actions of SNS officials who were engaged in order for the then opposition, primarily DF, to demolish the great bastion of DPS – Nikšić. Vladimir Mandić played the main role, as in the case of Budva.
The scheme was typically Vucic’s: first, at the end of January, a predecessor of a dozen members of the Serbian Progressive Party was sent, who as Pobjeda revealed, was hired by Petar Babovic, the mayor of the Pomoravlje district and a prominent official of the Vucic’s party.
After the collapse of the action of the first group, Vučić did not leave anything to chance, so he hired the first echelon of his party for Nikšić, which includes – Aleksandar Jokić, friend of his brother Andrej, and member of the Main Board and famous handball player Vladimir Mandić, as well as former national team handball player Dane Šijan.
Mandic and ad his team were then arrested by the police on suspicion of buying votes because of the large amounts of cash they owned. Apart from the aforementioned three men, Nemanja Bogdanović from Sarajevo, Slobodan Lalović from Foča, Dejan Puhalo from Trebinje, Blagdan Madžić from Foča and Miroslav Vujović were brought in for an interview. Police suspect they were brought from Serbia to Montenegro by DF deputy Milo Bozovic from Budva.
Also suspected of buying votes was Predrag Rajic, an SNS MP, and one of the ideologues of the great Serbian project, “Serbian World”./Pobjeda/