Perić and Mujović: Agreement reached on future functioning, political differences remain

Following a meeting on the future functioning of the Podgorica City Assembly, Podgorica Mayor Saša Mujović and City Assembly Speaker Srđan Perić said they had agreed that all future communication between them would be public and transparent, in the interest of the citizens.

Although the meeting was held in a constructive atmosphere, both Mujović and Perić said neither side had changed its political positions and that their differences remained.

Mujović said he expected Perić would eventually „receive the bill“ for the support he received from the Democratic Party of Socialists and the Democratic People's Party, while the leader of the „Preokret“ Movement (translation Turnaround Movement) said he did not share that view.

Speaking after the meeting, Perić said the two had agreed that all future communication would be conducted publicly and that all actions would be guided by the interests of Podgorica's citizens.

- The goal is to ensure there is no institutional deadlock - Perić said.

He stressed that neither side had changed its political views during the talks.

- Our political differences remain entirely unchanged. However, what we are discussing here is the functioning of the Capital City and the extent to which each of us contributes to ensuring that the citizens of Podgorica, and consequently Montenegro, benefit from the work of public institutions rather than suffer harm - Perić said.

Mujović said that Perić would not find an opponent in him, but rather someone willing to cooperate in good faith.

- It is a fact that our political differences remain and have not changed, nor were we trying to change them. Within the Europe Now Movement, there are still concerns that have burdened us, including the memory of the Positive Montenegro case involving Darko Pajović not so long ago. We are also aware that Mr. Perić's candidacy was backed by parties with significant political interests, namely the Democratic Party of Socialists and the Democratic People's Party. I will not speculate about the nature of those interests, but it is well known that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Therefore, I fear that sooner or later they may present Mr. Perić with the bill - Mujović said.

He added that he hoped the civic political option would continue to grow stronger both in Podgorica and across Montenegro, and that the time for political divisions should be left behind.

Perić recalled that the entire process had been initiated with the aim of preventing the introduction of compulsory administration in the capital, saying he believed this had benefited everyone and that citizens themselves would judge whether the criticism directed at him was justified. Asked by reporters whether he agreed with Mujović's assessment that he would eventually have to „pay the price“ for the support he received from the Democratic Party of Socialists and the Democratic People's Party, Perić replied that he did not.

- By doing what we did, we succeeded in preventing the introduction of compulsory administration and did something beneficial for the functioning of the Capital City's institutional system - Perić said.