Vucic Says SNS Will Stage Protests Against RTS

Aleksandar Vucic, leader of the “Aleksandar Vucic - United Serbia” list, announced on Wednesday, November 4, that the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) will organize demonstrations against Radio Television of Serbia (RTS). He spoke in a live TikTok broadcast and, according to Alo, joined from the SNS headquarters.

He did not give an exact date or place for the protest. He said the party will first wait for the new Assembly to be formed and watch what happens at the public broadcaster. He spoke about ten days after the parliamentary elections of October 25, accusing the winners in the same address of “extra-institutional rampage.”

What did Vucic say about RTS and Informer?

He presented the protest announcement as part of a critique of the media landscape after the elections:

“We are watching RTS, and very soon we will launch serious demonstrations against the public broadcaster, because what is happening at the public broadcaster is directed against all citizens of Serbia, not only against those they disagree with, but against absolutely all citizens of Serbia,” Vucic said.

He holds the Student List responsible for the state of the media. He claims that the Informer television channel is being shut down on its orders. “And let’s not kid ourselves: Informer is being shut down on the direct orders of the Student List,” Vucic said. He added that, in his words, this comes with the direct support of the European Union, and that EU officials had earlier told him the balance in the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media should be four to four, or five to four in the opposition’s favor, whereas after the elections it is now eight to zero.

He promised help for Informer even if the channel is shut down: “We will look for ways to help them, we will look for ways for them to be visible, and not only through a YouTube channel, on the internet.”

The Moscow flight and the Hyatt hotel: what Vucic claims

Speaking about the state of the country, Vucic described the case of a scheduled flight to Moscow that, as he put it, carried Aleksandar Vulin, Nenad Popovic and Dusan Bajatovic. In his account, the plane was turned back to Belgrade a few minutes before entering Russian airspace, near Vilnius. He said the order was given either by someone who wanted to curry favor with the Student List, or it came on that list’s direct orders. By his calculation, the passengers lost eight to nine hours, and he put the damage at no less than a million euros.

He also said that last night a group he called a gang of criminals broke into the Hyatt hotel and harassed those inside. “I will keep you informed about all of this, since the police and the prosecutor’s office will not,” he said. The statements made public contain no independent confirmation of these claims, and no response from the Student List to them.

He ironically congratulated the country on the choice of a new director of Elektroprivreda Srbije, the state power utility: “That one is the craziest of them all. That means it will be a question whether we will have electricity or anything else.”

The Student List, in his words, has no plan or program, and “they have wrecked the country in ten days more than in a year.” He described Serbia as a true banana republic.

Four working days and the pardons

Vucic called the proposal for a four-day working week harmful and linked it to rising unemployment. “Their proposal for a four-day working week will destroy Serbia,” he said. On accusations that he violated the Constitution as president by issuing 49 pardons, he said that is the exclusive prerogative of the President of the Republic.

Why does he want the government formed quickly?

He devoted part of his address to the elections in the United States. In his assessment, the Democrats’ victory in the midterms will complicate the foreign policy situation and lead to more expensive oil and oil products. For that reason, he says, the new government in Serbia should be formed as soon as possible:

“I expect Israel to be working on expanding its sphere of influence and its security zone, both in Syria and in Lebanon. I expect America, together with its ally, to attack Iran more harshly, which will contribute, besides what is most important, namely a higher number of casualties and, I would say, heavier political consequences, to a higher price of oil and oil products,” Vucic said.

He closed with a call: “And that is why it is important that the new government is formed as soon as possible, so that they can start dealing with these problems.” He summed up his view that the last ten days in Serbia were marked by what he calls extra-institutional behavior by the election winners: “Let’s not kid ourselves, this is extra-institutional rampage by those who won the elections.”