Union leader calls Serbia’s one-off aid a pre-election vote-buying scheme

Serbia’s one-off payment to citizens has drawn a sharp rebuke from trade union leader Ranka Savić, who described it as an attempt by the ruling Serbian Progressive Party to recover falling support.

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This is pre-election vote buying, which tells me that the SNS’s rating is falling drastically.

The Serbian parliament approved the payments as a measure to improve living standards during the energy crisis. Pensioners and people entitled to child benefits will receive assistance, while 6,000 dinars will go to other citizens.

Savić, president of the Association of Free and Independent Trade Unions, objected to the measure’s lack of selectivity. She said the same amount would go to Dušan Bajatović and to someone earning the minimum wage, even though people on the minimum wage live below the poverty line. She advised low-paid recipients to accept the money and either spend it or give it to someone else.

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I have nothing against providing assistance, if it were not aimed at winning voters.

She argued that the payments should function as an economic and social measure rather than a political one. In her view, the government’s decision also contradicted its presentation of Serbia as an economic giant with the highest GDP growth. Savić said economic decisions should involve economists and social dialogue, rather than being made solely by a parliamentary majority.

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Everyone will receive 6,000 dinars. Bajatović will receive it, and so will the person receiving the minimum wage.