The bankruptcy of the Montenegrin economy due to the increase in wages, which instead of the creation of new jobs is accompanied by an increase in state borrowing, which was previously warned by economic experts, is increasingly being mentioned by politicians. Economic analyst Predrag Drecun has no qualms that politicians are building positions in this way before the upcoming elections and says that bankruptcy will be a realistic option if the spending of state money is not rationalized soon.
Due to the increase in wages and consumption, which is not accompanied by economic growth, the Montenegrin economy is threatened with bankruptcy, recently warned one of the leaders of the Europe now movement and former finance minister Milojko Spajić. However, Spajić received the same criticisms when he increased the minimum wage from EUR 250 to EUR 450 during the mandate of the 42nd government at the expense of canceling contributions to the Health Fund.
We doubt that the situation in the treasury is so bad that it even had zero. When Argentina officially went bankrupt, the price of bonds was around 60 cents, and now they value Montenegrin bonds at 50 cents. This means that Montenegro, from the perspective of investors, is bankrupt – said Milojko Spajić, president of the Europe Now Movement.
On the other hand, Prime Minister Dritan Abazović assures that there is no talk of bankruptcy. He states that the collection of all fees and taxes exceeds the plan, and expectations are that the upcoming summer season will be a record, so he responds to Spajić’s claims as follows:
I really don’t have those dark thoughts, if someone has those parameters, I think they should look at their own responsibility, I think that’s fair. Everything else is preparation for the elections, understandable, legitimate, there is nothing in dispute – he said.
Do the citizens, however, have reason to fear? Experts in the economic situation say that there is no room for panic for now, but they warn that bankruptcy will be certain if the state continues to borrow without starting production and creating new jobs.
I think that we have not yet entered the zone where that fear should be realistic, but if certain steps and measures are not taken to rationalize public spending, I am afraid that this scenario could indeed be very realistic. This is primarily caused by the great appetites of the political parties that make up the current government still in a technical mandate and building positions for the upcoming parliamentary elections – economic analyst Predrag Drecun told TVCG.
And how successfully politicians use economic issues to gain power or survive on the political scene, the citizens will judge already in the parliamentary elections, which are scheduled for June 11.
