27. 10. 2009

SOCIALISTS AGAINST SUSA

Belgrade, October 27, 2009 (Danas) - Gordana Susa and Milan Becejic, candidates of the media sector, were not elected to the RBA Council yesterday, since they failed to receive the necessary majority of votes of the Parliament members. Susa received a total of 120 out of 126 votes, necessary for the election to the Council. Seven parliament deputies from SPS, PUPS and United Serbia did not vote for her election, while LDP deputies, who had announced earlier their support to Susa as candidate of the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS), were not present at the session at the time of voting. Only one deputy voted for Milan Becejic, candidate of the Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS), while 124 voted against.

Since none of the candidates received the necessary majority of votes, the entire nominating procedure will be repeated, as done with the candidates of the non-governmental sector.

No one from the SPS wanted to explain to the press their abstaining from voting on candidates for the RBA Council. President of the United Serbia Dragan Markovic Palma said that he had acted in line with the recommendations of the Chief of parliamentary group Branko Ruzic not to vote for Susa.

After the vote on several items of the agenda, the MPs opened a new session with more then fifty items on the agenda, which included the Bill on the maximum number of employees in the public administration and the Bill on reduction of employees in local self-government, which entered urgent parliamentary procedure in the last moment. This act stipulated that the number of permanent employees in municipal administrations be reduced by 15 percent.