Serbian Prime Minister Milos Vucevic resigned on Tuesday, following months of mass protests throughout the nation over the deadly collapse of a practice station roof in November.
The Balkan nation has been rocked by common protests within the wake of the lethal catastrophe on the practice station within the northern metropolis of Novi Sad that killed 15 folks, following intensive renovations on the facility.
The collapse has ignited long-standing anger throughout Serbia over corruption and the alleged lack of oversight on building initiatives.
“My irrevocable decision is to resign from the position of prime minister,” Vucevic instructed a news convention in Belgrade.
“I had a long meeting with the president of Serbia this morning… we talked about everything, and he accepted my arguments,” he added.
“So in order to avoid further complicating things, so we do not further raise tensions in society, I made this decision.”
Before taking over an earlier authorities submit in Belgrade, Vucevic had served as mayor of Novi Sad from 2012 to 2022, when renovations started on the practice station.
The prime minister has been in workplace for lower than a yr.
More than a dozen folks have been charged in reference to the Novi Sad accident, together with former transport minister Goran Vesic, who resigned days after it occurred.
Shortly after Vucevic resigned, Novi Sad mayor Milan Djuric stated he would even be stepping down.
“Resigning is not an expression of weakness or retreat in the face of challenges, but an act of assuming responsibility and opening space for the restoration of trust among people,” the mayor stated in a press release posted on social media.
‘Means nothing’
The prime minister’s announcement got here as hundreds of protesters ended a 24-hour blockade at a serious visitors intersection in Belgrade – the newest in a sequence of large rallies held throughout the nation.
Demonstrators on Tuesday morning packed up and cleared the realm on the Autokomanda junction – which hyperlinks a number of main roads and motorways within the Serbian capital – after many camped out in a single day.
The blockade got here after pupil organizers referred to as for a normal strike final Friday that noticed legal professionals cease work, and the closure of small companies and colleges throughout Serbia.
Students have emerged because the leaders of the protest motion and have been blockading campuses throughout the nation for months.
With strain mounting, President Aleksandar Vucic addressed the nation Monday night, defending his authorities’s response to the Novi Sad tragedy and vowing to open a dialogue with the protesters.
Student organizers proceed to demand extra motion, together with better transparency into the investigation and the discharge of all paperwork linked to the renovation of the station.
For months, Vucic and different authorities officers have oscillated between issuing requires talks and allegations that the demonstrators have been being backed by international powers.
The authorities has launched a raft of paperwork linked to station’s renovations, however consultants from the Faculty of Civil Engineering in Belgrade say they’re incomplete.
Other key calls for embody dropping prices in opposition to protesters arrested at rallies, an finish to assaults on demonstrators, and elevated authorities spending on training.
Following the premier’s announcement, college students who spoke to Agence France-Presse (AFP) insisted that their calls for be met and dismissed Vucevic’s resignation.
“The prime minister’s resignation means nothing to the students. Our demands are clear and we will continue protesting no matter who resigns,” stated Maksim Jankovic, a 19-year-old biology pupil at Belgrade University.
As premier, Vucevic was formally the pinnacle of presidency in Serbia, nonetheless, the place is essentially thought of to be subordinate to President Vucic – who has dominated the nation for greater than a decade.
Source: www.dailysabah.com