What Does PES Believe In

Written by: Darko Šuković

In every society, there are people like Vasilije Čarapić. But only in deeply broken states does someone like him become a member of parliament. Those who try to portray the calculated downfall of Montenegro’s historic capital — turning it into a cursed valley where the most stubborn Montenegrins will one day "nurture nostalgia for what no longer exists" — and who present the monstrous plan to transform a city, once the symbol of Montenegro’s endurance, into proof of its unsustainability as merely the result of a relationship between a political party and a criminal clan (now split in two), are setting themselves up as the new decision-makers over the country’s future.

Much like Cetinje, Nikšić stands as a symbol of Montenegrin antifascism. That symbol was struck down with the appointment of Marko Kovačević, brandished like a flag of anti-antifascism. It would be pointless to keep repeating the disgraceful episodes from the mayor of Nikšić’s life and career over the past four years. The real question is: what do Dr. Mrkić and the party he represents (if PES can even be called a political party in the conventional sense) believe in?

Really — what values are supposedly important to this respected doctor from Nikšić? Does he view genocide and war criminals the same way as the man listed right behind him on the party ticket? Does he see Serbia as a motherland like the person whose re-election he supports does? In a survey, would he pick Rako or Sava? Does he admire Joka Baletić and Ljubo Čupić — and what would he do if someone were to desecrate the hero’s monument again? Does he consider outdated the very values for which people once lived and died in Nikšić — honor, chivalry, dignity, self-respect, decency? And is the painter Todor from Jasenovo Polje right when he says we have "turned betrayal into a matter of democratic choice"?

And spare me the speeches about commitment to European integration and disdain for organized crime — at least until you can secure a parliamentary majority without relying on the support of those whose crimes still terrorize children in Kosovo and Bosnia, where mothers still use their atrocities to frighten their kids. (That moment — a deep moral burden, I’d like to think — still hangs over the leadership of the Bosniak and Albanian parties, no matter how easily they pretend otherwise.) And without the help of loads of dirty money, “institutionally smuggled” in church and state vehicles.

It’s almost rhetorical whether PES is driven by values or simply reacting out of fear as a primal instinct. Just look at Filip Ivanović’s behavior during the EP Foreign Affairs Committee meeting in Brussels. Not for a second did he hesitate when it came to deciding whether distancing himself from the Serbian Patriarch was worth keeping his vice-presidential seat. As far as I know, he hasn’t been part of the believers' circle since August 30, 2020. Compared to them, he’s practically an ancient devotee of Saint Sava.

He knowingly told a lie, fully aware that at least a few MEPs knew he was lying — and that they knew he knew it too. Because he knows full well that Joanikije can’t even cross himself without Porfirije’s permission.

Meanwhile, Milojko Spajić, with the Alabar deal and the Velika Plaža project, has become even closer to Andrija Mandić. Strangely, the longer Spajić serves as Prime Minister, the more politically immature he seems. We can debate another time whether greed is a character trait or an instinct — what matters is that it often leads straight to fear.

That night in Parliament, Spajić’s eyes were as wide as on Good Friday.

Above all, the Prime Minister appeared willing to give Mandić whatever he wanted in exchange for his votes on the UAE agreement — not just backing Marko Kovačević, but also offering dual citizenship, making Serbian an official language, and introducing a new logo and even more traditional flags...

Most of you are probably familiar with the Sonoran Desert, a classic setting in old Westerns, straddling the border between Arizona and California. It’s where John Wayne famously squeezed water from a saguaro cactus.

But many might not know (and for those who do, forgive me) that it’s also called the Gila Desert, named after the dangerous Gila monster, known for its venomous bite and dark, hypnotic stare.

When a person locks eyes with the creature, it’s said they’re drawn to it, almost hypnotically, walking toward their death without realizing it. If no emergency help arrives — and let’s be honest, in the Sonoran Desert, emergency rescue is scarce, and soon enough, Montenegro will be the same, given the state of the Health Fund — they won’t make it.

Of course, you understand — in this story, for which Frank Laramie is responsible, not me — Andrija Mandić is the Gila monster. And Milojko? He’s the one desperately in need of political emergency services.

So yes — it's instincts, not values, that are driving PES’s politics, and by extension, Montenegro’s.

It might still be a bit early to call this a tragic fact, but it’s something that outside observers are beginning to notice: the remaining legitimacy of European leadership is now being used to back the politics of the New Serb Democracy, which is largely supported by ethnic Montenegrins.

The election results in Nikšić show this enough. Just take a close look at the census data and compare it with the voting results from April 13th — there’s no need for us to do that basic homework for you.

The fear that the EU will finally catch on to what’s obvious prompted Filip Ivanović to say in Brussels what he wouldn’t dare admit back home in Podgorica, not even under pressure.

The fear of another wave of religious protests — and the collapse of the mega-project he rushed into, frankly, like a man possessed — is driving Milojko Spajić to focus solely on the Democratic Front, Velje Brdo, and Velika Plaža.

Whether through intuition, extrasensory perception, or simply by paying attention to the Mission in Brussels (which could show a bit more respect for the flag it represents), the Prime Minister should have noticed the bad signals coming from the EU — signals that are bad for both him and PES. The West doesn’t typically follow its mistakes to the edge of the cliff. And after Jakov Milatović was chosen to speak at the opening of the new U.S. Embassy, coupled with the fact that he’s being received by mostly third-tier (at least for now) officials in Washington, it’s becoming questionable whether America remains a safe haven for the Prime Minister at all.

When Montenegro's current Parliament was formed, I likened the PES parliamentary group to a random assortment of passengers who had hopped off a "Lasta" bus at the Post Office and wandered into the Parliament building. Since then, this unusual and diverse group has begun to take on a clearer shape. One faction is "more DF than DF itself" (as if Tomislav Sokol had overheard me), another follows the party leadership (though it’s difficult to distinguish from the first without a trained eye – but that’s why political analysts exist), and a small handful (can two or three people be considered a group?) hold their independent views.

One thing is certain: among the MPs, ministers, and party leaders, some see how the toxic grip of the "gile" (tick) is poisoning the brain and body of PES. Beyond their concern for the fate of the political entity they've found themselves in, they increasingly worry about how history will judge their actions during a time when the state is teetering on the edge.

Milojko Spajić and PES are gradually moving out of the phase where the EU was still patting them on the back and dangling ever-larger carrots. Just as gradually, but inevitably, the realization is dawning that a political strategy driven primarily by fear can only be redirected by an even bigger stick than the one that first instilled that fear. The election results for DF in Nikšić are visible even from Brussels. The EU won’t continue to deceive itself, as PES does, with Milojko’s assurances that he can keep Mandić in check. They can see PES sinking into quicksand, while Mandić grows stronger by the day. And they understand exactly how to place this within the broader geopolitical context, one that Patriarch Porfirije Perić outlined for Putin: disgracefully subservient to the Kremlin, yet still the head of the most powerful political entity in Montenegro – the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC).

The wise need no further explanation. As for Prime Minister Spajić, I’m afraid he still does.