Professor [of the Faculty of Economics] Dejan Šoškić told N1 that the one-time aid to citizens, announced through the budget revision, can be interpreted as an electoral move by the authorities. He believes public funds should not be used for short-term political effects, but that the state should base spending decisions on expert analyses and long-term planning.
Professor of the Faculty of Economics Dejan Šoškić believes that the announced one-time aid to citizens can be interpreted as an electoral move by the authorities, using public funds to win the support of voters.
“That is a move that can be interpreted as an electoral move by the ruling structure, which wants to win the sympathy of certain groups of voters at the expense of taxpayers. That is contrary to the basic principle of free voting — a vote cannot be bought, and there must be no pressure or blackmail. These are things that have become commonplace in our country, and they are contrary to the Constitution and the law,” he told N1.
Speaking about the budget revision, Šoškić questions how it is possible for the state to suddenly talk about “unusually high revenues” if the budget was previously well planned.
“Why, then, isn’t the enormous public debt being reduced?”
He believes that if there are additional revenues, the issue of reducing public debt should be raised.
“We live in a distorted situation, in a wonderland in many respects. This includes someone now saying that there are unusually high revenues. The question arises: why didn’t you plan the budget properly, what are these high revenues and on what basis? Why, then, isn’t the enormous public debt being reduced, which is now around 42 billion euros, while when this political structure began running the country, it was around 14.5 billion euros?” Šoškić said.
Where is the money for the one-time aid to citizens coming from?
Asked where the money for the one-time aid to citizens is coming from, the N1 interviewee stressed that these are public funds, meaning money obtained from taxes and other contributions paid by citizens.
“These are public funds; the money comes from the budget, which is partly financed by the taxes and VAT that we all pay. We all fill that budget. To now give money from the budget of a country that is among the poorest in Europe and cannot boast particularly strong economic results — what is the basis for that?” Šoškić asked.
“The use of public funds cannot be the result of the individual whim of someone in power”
He added that in serious countries, the use of public money should not depend on the political will of individuals, but on public debate, laws and long-term planning.
“In serious countries, the use of public funds cannot be the result of some individual whim of someone who is currently in a position of power and decision-making. Every serious country wants this to be debated, laws to be adopted, the budget to be planned, and discussions to be held about how to permanently improve the position of pensioners and socially vulnerable people,” Šoškić said.
As for whether one-time aid actually solves citizens’ problems, he believes such measures can create a temporary impression of improvement, but not a lasting change.
“For the situation to improve permanently, we must have not only a more competitive economy, but also a country without corruption. That would free up additional funds for many purposes,” Šoškić explained.
“There should be full transparency for every expenditure”
Speaking about capital projects included in the budget revision, including Expo and the National Stadium, Šoškić said that every major public investment should be completely transparent and subject to a serious analysis of its economic viability.
“What do we need some unproductive investments, stadiums, for? Normal procedures in the development of these projects are being bypassed. That is the consequence of actions that must not be carried out in this way. What we are living through today is an illustration not only for us, but also for other countries, so that they know how things should not be done,” he said.
He added that significant amounts of money can be funneled through major capital investments, making their justification difficult to verify.
READ MORE:
“A very important thing is that decision-making be based on expert analyses,” Šoškić said.
Could the payment of one-time aid increase inflationary pressure?
Speaking about the possible increase in inflationary pressure due to the payment of one-time aid, which experts have warned about, Šoškić explained that additional money in citizens’ hands can increase consumption, but that does not necessarily mean healthy economic growth.
“When you give money, especially to the socially most vulnerable, that income is generally spent domestically. If we do not have an adequate supply that our economy can increase, then aggregate demand will rise. Some hope that this will increase GDP growth, but our growth essentially needs to be in competitive areas — industrial products and services that are exported. That is where we need to create sources of growth, rather than distribute pre-election gifts, so that people, through purchases under limited conditions, create inflationary impulses,” he concluded.
MORE TOPICS:
Source: Nova ; Foto:Vesna Lalić/Nova.rs
Add Serbian Times as your Google source