“I would not promise something I cannot deliver. It may happen that you are late sometimes, but we successfully complete 70–80 percent of what we say we will do. I would like to set aside some time to explain what we are going to do. The question is also who will be prime minister and who will lead the government. First and foremost, I would say that, within this bicameral executive branch, the government holds the dominant position, given its powers and prerogatives. There is no hiding behind anyone here; you have to deliver everything you have promised,” Vučić said at the beginning of the program.
He added that, for him, it was enough to point out that Serbia had 550,000 fewer employed people 15 years ago than it does today, even though the population is now smaller than it was then.
“And that tells you, I would say, more eloquently than anything else how different and transformed Serbia is today. Serbia now has a significantly lower public debt ratio than it did back then. Serbia is now a country with low debt, exceptionally low debt. Today, Serbia is one of the fastest-growing economies in Europe. Everything we once were in various sports, we are now in the economy. Next year, we will be Europe’s fastest-growing economy. These are facts. If someone does not like the facts, what can I do? You cannot fight that,” he said.
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He also added that we have problems everywhere.
“Sewage infrastructure is a problem everywhere, and I expected progress to be faster, but unfortunately, that was not possible. I have decided to improve healthcare, water supply and sewage systems in every village and every city in our country, because these are the issues that weigh most heavily on ordinary people. So, we have problems everywhere—in central Serbia, in the north of Serbia, everywhere,” he said.
According to him, every municipality and every district will have a completely different hospital with entirely new equipment.
“People will be able to receive healthcare services that are incomparably better than those available today. I will be fully and absolutely committed to this. I will work on it every day, and this is important to me. Water supply issues can be resolved within eight or nine years, but we must start immediately if we are to succeed,” he added.
“I believe every citizen wants our children to learn”
According to him, if he were to receive the confidence of the citizens, he would have an outright majority in the National Assembly.
“If we do not have an outright majority, then we will not have a majority at all. Let that be clear. On the other hand, as president of the Republic, I could influence someone through my advice, or exert informal pressure on someone in the government, but that made no sense and would not have made any sense, because I controlled the majority in the National Assembly—not personally, but through the party I belong to.
“But how can I explain it to you? In the end, people think about themselves, and very few want to get involved in that kind of political friction. I do not want conflicts with anyone, anywhere. I believe every citizen wants our children, our school pupils and our university students to learn,” he said.
He added that the elections would ultimately show who has the legitimacy to pursue one policy or the other.
“If they win, universities and schools can remain blocked forever. They can also block secondary and primary schools, just as in France, and do whatever they want. If we win, that will no longer be possible. I have made firm promises to the citizens and, believe me, I will fulfil them. There will be no more politics at universities, and there will be competition. Whether someone likes it or not, I believe this is a major step forward for our country—a tremendously significant step forward for our country,” he stressed.
“It is also important to boost tourism in Serbia”
Vučić also stressed the importance of promoting tourism in all parts of Serbia.
“We must develop tourism. We must provide all the necessary logistical support ourselves for the agricultural, food-processing and manufacturing industries. We should provide subsidies for these sectors not at 50 percent, but, if necessary, at 70 percent. We need to recover everything we lost in the process of privatisation when these idols and candidates on the ‘Student List’ were running the country. These are the areas where we will invest the most and provide the greatest financial support, and I believe this will yield significant results,” Vučić said.
“We have already replaced 50 percent of mayors and municipal presidents”
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“We have already replaced 50 percent of mayors and municipal presidents compared with the previous elections. Following the most recent local elections, we replaced 50 percent of mayors and municipal presidents. That was not enough.
We could see what happens when people lose their positions and become our worst enemies in the cases of Borko Stefanović, Branko Ružić, Boris Milićević and many others. The moment they failed to secure a contract, the moment they did not get a position, an office, or the perks that come with it, they immediately began attacking everyone around them.
But you have to act decisively and without compromise, no matter how difficult it may sometimes be, regardless of the friendships you have built and maintained over the years, because you have to do the best possible job for Serbia. The tavern is one thing, and business is another,” Vučić said.
On the protests in France
Commenting on the protests in France, Vučić said that the country was not facing problems with electricity supply or electricity prices, but that someone wanted to bring the country down.
“There are powers outside Europe, as well as within Europe, that have an interest in this. France is a major nuclear power with substantial nuclear energy capacity. I am not talking only about nuclear weapons and military capabilities, but also about nuclear energy. France does not have problems with electricity supply or electricity prices.
“These are France’s problems, but France also had a leader who had established himself as a European leader. That is why it was necessary to bring France down, because many do not want to allow France to play that role. If someone cannot see that, and if someone thinks this happened because the wealthiest French children did not like the toilets in their schools, then I have nothing more to add to what I have already said,” he explained.
“I don’t have a voter base; I have people who think and make decisions”
Asked about citizens and public figures such as Nikola Pejaković and Filip Grbić, who have increasingly spoken out and said that they had not previously voted for Aleksandar Vučić’s electoral list but were now seriously considering doing so, Vučić said:
“I don’t have a voter base. We have people who think and make decisions. And people always make the right decision. Even when they make a decision I do not like, I will say that it is the right decision, and the judgment of history will confirm or reject it.
“And the very next day, I will begin fighting against those in power. Not with statements such as, ‘We will purge you, destroy you and imprison you,’ like little children. That is how little Perica imagines life and politics. Politics is something much greater and much more complicated.
“I am proud that I did not arrest opposition leaders, that we maintained democracy at a very high level, and that we had media outlets calling me the most terrible and derogatory names. All of that will become part of history, too. From being called the ‘unmentionable one’ to being labelled Hitler, a criminal, a murderer and who knows what else. I am very happy about all of that. As for those threatening revolutionary terror, killings and everything else, I am not sure they are capable of carrying it out,” he said.
He also added that he was genuinely proud of the people who supported his electoral list.
“Whether three or five percent of people support us, or somewhat more than that, we will see at the elections. But I am proud of these people. They did not want to turn like sunflowers, changing their direction with the wind.
“You saw their rallies when they ended. They would then walk out, childishly, like kindergarten children, carrying sunflowers and waving them around, along with who knows what else. Srdanović avoided both a televised and a radio debate. They are humiliating the citizens, not me,” he said.
Vučić stressed that he was prepared to pay any price rather than abandon his principles and ideas.
“I will never give up on a progressive and successful Serbia as long as I live. You will send me to prison? Really? No problem. I will defeat you from prison, from anywhere.
“The only thing you can do is kill me. That is the only thing you do not understand. You do not understand how large a movement of people will stand up to those who want to destroy our country. And we will always do so peacefully. Not through thuggery. Not through violence. Not by beating women, something you boast about and never condemn, not even for a single moment,” he noted.
Final message to citizens
“Those who cherish freedom have their own vision. To all of you who are defending Serbia, there is no lie they will not resort to and no fabrication they will not put into circulation.
“Thank you for your strength, energy, love and support. We will overcome this together once again. I also thank those who support the other side, and I hope they will understand that we are defending them, too, and safeguarding their future.
“I also thank older citizens, especially women, and urge them to remain disciplined and responsible, so that we can give our children a future,” Vučić concluded.
