Prince for president

Competing for votes mostly looked like bargaining with construction workers who are offering to repair your decrepit house. One of them says that something might be done and that it would cost you considerably. The other one is defaming the entire construction workers’ trade and says there is no way to save neither the windows nor the installations unless the appropriate laws and regulations were brought. Nevertheless you choose him, for he asks for nothing, except to trust his word. And you keep shivering in the house that is inevitably falling apart.

The last president of Yugoslavia self-confidently announced his victory in the first round of the elections some twenty days ago. Now he is looking for more favorable circumstances even for the second round. He does not trust the voters anymore, so he fears he won’t win in the repeated first round. And he cares terribly to be the president of something. He got used to it. It is not without reason that a new song was launched: “Druze Tito, bela lica, sad se zoves Kostunica!” (“Comrade Tito, with fair face, now your name is Kostunica!”). People love life-long presidents.

By the way, the second round has confirmed the theory of how the ten others charged against one in the first round. The votes of the nine wash-outs unmistakably went where they belonged. Who does not believe this, better look into the results of elections in Vojvodina. The voters did not care for Sloba’s advice or Seselj’s instruction, but cast their votes for the one who was dear to them. Not even that was sufficient for his victory.

Europe has suddenly remembered we should change our election law. They are constantly worried for us when it costs them nothing. Since when is it so important to them that Serbia has a president? Serbia is not an independent state and it doesn’t intend to become one, and its present president clearly explained, after years of silence, how the man in that position is most valuable if he doesn’t show off, but keeps quiet wisely.

That’s right! Whoever missed the president of the Republic in the last two years? Even the greatest constitution lovers not even once warned that the president is slacking or doing a poor job. Which means he was doing all right.

So, Serbia needs a president who will not go on people’s nerves, who will not meddle into other people’s business, who will not argue and quarrel and who will not complain every now and then. Everybody would know he was there, he was doing something and would respect him more than somebody who was confronted to the half of the Republic.

Serbia, if one thinks, already has a man like that. The host of the White Palace, as much is known, has no quarrel with neither left nor right, nor what remained of the center. Not only he is a man of the world, he is also a descendant of the people’s dynasty. He doesn’t request the crown. He has some property. He was brought up in a country where, unlike in Serbia, robbery and abuse of power is considered to be breaking of the law. He is not an upstart who wants to provide for the bunch of relatives and friends. He doesn’t have his party with a pack of hungry activists who need to be positioned somewhere. He didn’t insult around, like some did, nor it was heard he did harm to anybody. He does not talk big with threats and empty promises. He doesn’t mind national minorities, like some do. Nor they mind him, which is not irrelevant. And all the time he is here.

If the Crown Prince can be the Prime Minister in Bulgaria, why can’t he be the president in Serbia? With limited or (more) permanent mandate, depending on national consensus.

Thoughts like this, from an always grumpy republican and liberal, might seem frivolous. It is much more frivolous, gentlemen, to waste time with the elections like these. Circle after circle, in such way, sooner or later one certainly arrives to the ninth circle of hell. If the words of the one who thinks of himself as a winner are interpreted correctly, he takes as his most important task the struggle against Serbian Government. Such a president could hardly become the warrant of stability even in much more stable countries. Finally, such film has already been seen. Didn’t the winner of the 8th Session (*of the Central Committee of Serbian League of Communists, in 1987*) announce relentless struggle, both institutional and uninstitutional, against all of his opponents? Until he got tired of the institutional struggle.

Serbia needs stability, which means – agreement on five or ten priorities within the next five or ten years. Two more rounds of cursing, insinuating and lies, will only further confront those who decide not only about the lives of the voters, but about the lives who still don’t have the vote. If my impression is correct, the confronted parties only agree that Kosovo is no longer a part of Serbia, and give the right to vote only to a pert of Kosovo.

Comrade Milutinovic did not, so it is said, meddle into his job. The fact that he stood aside from everyday affairs did not harm Serbia. On the contrary. However, he wasn’t quite popular. Because of his political past. If we go from his case, we again come to the conclusion that it would be most convenient to put together nice and useful. To have a president unpolluted with politics, respected and appreciated by most citizens. Such a president would have the votes of more than half voters. Even if he had no opponent.

And why wouldn’t a king be like that? If one wants to have a king, one must have a state! At least one like Slovenia or Macedonia.