"I'm Still Standing!"

In the now far off year of 1992, engineer Nebojsa Covic (the then first man of the Belgrade socialists), had organized a special pre-election campaign for Belgrade and with the slogan "we are all socialists to a certain extent", brought to his then party a landslide election victory. Today, while Covic is emptying his drawers from his office in City Hall as former mayor, the mention of his name no longer brings out "we are all socialists to a certain extent", but rather "not all socialists are the same". Someone could maliciously add - "especially when they are former socialists" like Covic, who has recently been expelled from the Serbian Socialist Party (SPS).

One would have to admit that Covic had always "stood out" in the SPS and earned, as a certain person had already noticed, the harshest possible grade for a socialist: "being too prominent". After all, at the recent disputed local elections Covic was the only prominent SPS member who won at the first round with a majority.

Regardless of the baggage Nebojsa Covic shall carry into history as mayor (and what he shall be remembered by), all that he has done for his fellow citizens (and for his reputation as well) in the last few weeks is worthy of all respect. Covic was the first -and so far the only- socialist who had openly stood up against the electoral thefts and forgery of the citizens' will. Primarily due to this sin he was later expelled from SPS.

Covic then refused to open the traditional film festival FEST as mayor. He appeared on opening night as a mere citizen (someone had deleted his name from the list of those who receive tickets for this event), and not as a host. In the days when the special police force members were beating people up on the streets of Belgrade, Nebojsa Covic, via BK television tried to explain to them that they were not facing enemies but their own people. He later visited the victims of police violence in hospital.

At the time when this conversation was held (Wednesday February 5) Nebojsa Covic was no longer the mayor of Belgrade. His mandate had expired on the previous day, the same day when the President of Serbia Slobodan Milosevic had called the government of Serbia to prepare a special law by which the results of the November 17 elections would be recognized.

"I don't feel the slightest, even moral satisfaction following the suggestion of the President of Serbia for an acceptance of the OSCE report on the opposition victory for one part of the local elections in Serbia", says Nebojsa Covic for VREME. "In the suggestion there is no mention as to who on the local political scene or in SPS was right and who wasn't. Nothing could have been expected but this - that due to great damage which the two and a half months crisis has brought upon our country as well as to maintain the ruling position of SPS, a suggestion is made for cutting the Gordian knot. Anyway, what does the recognition of the November 17 election results mean? Does it implicitly include an assessment that certain individuals, which are now hastily seemingly lending their support to the Serbian president, have made a grave error? And will they answer for it? Even if that were to happen, believe me there is no room for my personal triumph since all of us have endured so much, truthfully in different measures. I hope that the opposition coalition shall not give themselves up to the pleasure of the recognition of the election results. Devilishly hard work awaits them", stressed our collocutor.

If there is no triumph, is there any resentment?

Resentment? Certainly not. As you yourself have stated, many regard me as one of the most successful mayors and that in extremely difficult times for Belgrade. However, modesty is more befitting these days, as well as the feeling of personal misery due to the uncalled for police beatings of not a small number of people who had for two and a half months demanded and demonstrated their civil rights, including the right to publicly protest. The feeling of misfortune also because on the streets of Belgrade one part of the people were fighting others, due to the abortive policies of a part of the SPS and JUL leadership yet also, let's admit it, due to the many-years-long uncompromising and unwise rivalry of the totally confronted policies of the government and the opposition.

There are claims which say that Belgrade was close to provisional measures. That even the Prime Minister Marjanovic was surprised when, instead of a suggestion for provisional measures, he received a letter in which a "special law" is mentioned?

I know nothing about that. I only know that on Tuesday February 4 all legal deadlines were expiring and that something had to have been done by then.

How do you see the future development of events in case the government and the Assembly of Serbia "observe" the demands from Milosevic's letter? Does a round table follow, serious changes in the media...

Just like all the citizens of Serbia, I hope for a "happy end". And I cannot conceive that happy end without a political dialogue, however they care to call it, without a democratization of political life, a mutual agreement on the rules of the "game", that is the electoral and media one. I believe that there were various quicker and therefore easier ways to resolve the current dangerous political paralysis. A different road has been offered and - it should be made use of.

Can this political crisis truly be resolved by merely recognizing the results of the election with an almost 80 day delay? Will you, at the end, be the only member of the ruling party held "responsible" for what had occurred?

Definitely not. Even in the SPS ranks, first of all at the lower level, and shortly on the higher levels as well, someone shall publicly demand, followed by someone else, answers to the questions as to who is really to blame for it all. And after everything, I believe, the opposition shall ask for changes of the political life conditions and for the implementation of the new rules of the game. In case that doesn't happen, in future political rivalry and confrontation SPS shall enter handicapped, visibly weakened, resembling its shadow. I find the other part of your question interesting yet at the same time comical as well. So let us carry on in the same tone: no, Covic shall not be the only culprit, because beside him, who had been a successful politician both at the federal and local elections and the most successful SPS candidate, the culprit is also the unsuccessful, now former Nis SPS ruler, Mile Ilic. The two of us, however different, are responsible. Many others are, I suppose, irresponsible. And I believe that some shall truly answer.

These days a lot is being said on the alleged conflict of the so called "soft" and "hard" socialists, and you claim that the "incapable" ones are those who had truly won. What is the future of the party which you were a member of until recently?

That primarily depends on the party itself. Only parties that shall rely on those capable with a clear sense of responsibility towards those whose interests they should represent as well as towards history shall have a future.

The manner in which you were expelled from SPS speaks of the undemocratic nature of this party, just like all others on our political scene in which different opinions are not tolerated. You claim that Slobodan Milosevic is surrounded by unscrupulous and power-loving people as well as amateurs of small stature. How is it that you had not perceived these facts sooner, or at least pointed them out?

I had noticed them earlier and pointed them out, drawing fury upon myself of those whom I had named in such a manner. That surrounding had changed from time to time and those qualifications do not refer to all those who had been in the president's vicinity. There was one, during my short presence in politics, relatively long period when I had totally dedicated all my efforts to the upkeep of the city. In the conditions in which Belgrade then had to survive, there were very little politics and a huge amount of difficult and serious work.

In your opinion, why is it that the police started to beat people up in the streets only a few days prior to Milosevic's letter?

I am as curious as you are. In my appeal that same morning I did not hide my agitation over all that had needlessly occurred, over each, regardless of whose punch, a drop of spilled blood, and everyone's humiliation. But I don't know. We shall most certainly have our answers one day and we are left with nothing else except to hope that it shall never happen again.

Are you aware of the fact that at the SPS meetings they mention you as a traitor who was supposed to convene the new City Hall with the coalition SPS-JUL majority at the beginning of December? How and when did you decide to become a "traitor"?

I know there have been those who have accused me of that. Yet I couldn't convene that Assembly since neither my civil nor political conscience would allow that, nor my feeling for justice which are the basic preconditions of a good political and social order, however that seems naive to the cynics. I didn't immediately, without a second thought, decide to become as you say a "traitor". I tried, and now I can see longer than was needed, to stop the obedient mentality from prevailing in SPS and for decisions to be adopted in accordance with true facts and seriously confronted opinions. Due to this I had broken off with the party previously as well, not always being successful in my efforts, and often working on my own initiative. However, there are situations such as this election one, when there is no room for compromises and an "all or nothing" question is posed.

In the first inter-party analysis following the elections it was held against you that, along with Branislav Ivkovic, you were most responsible for the "loss" of Belgrade...

I suppose you don't know this. Even before the elections, in my detailed analysis I had warned SPS on a number of occasions that they could lose the elections in Belgrade in case we start the pre-election campaign, in the wider yet also in the literal sense, with certain moves and in the manner which was conceived and thereby imposed and implemented by Mr. Ivkovic. It turned out that I was right - I won at the first while Ivkovic had pitifully been dragged through a few election rounds. That wouldn't have been so horrible if he had comprehended that in politics he needed both tact and popularity, at least in ones' own membership, and that arrogance, selfishness and conceit are dangerous allies. In all truth, due to his incapability and the crisis which he personally had greatly contributed to, he was ousted from the position of Belgrade party chief, yet I fear that he had spent too little time in that function to be able to learn anything. Such an opinion of him would most effectively be denied if he was to withdraw from politics forever. He isn't cut out for it.

Lately we heard on a number of occasions how Slobodan Milosevic initially said that Belgrade was a "jumbo jet" for which the opposition lacked a pilot. Why didn't he then allow them to try and "crash"?

That is true. Those were his words uttered to me and a few others. I still ask myself why he didn't let them have that "jumbo jet". I hope he has understood what bad councilors he has had and how they, along with the silent opportunistic majority, have not brought us any good.

You had spoken to President Milosevic on a number of occasions. Is the impression correct that he only makes important decisions when his back is against the wall?

I don't know if his back was against the wall while making this decision, yet he definitely could have made one sooner stopping those who had brought us here.

There are many people who believe that the fate of Studio B and the break-up of the City Transport Company (GSB) strike are two huge smears in your career as mayor...

As mayor, it was my duty to protect the rights of City Hall as Studio B's founder. Following my demand it was promised to me that I would be allowed to make a good, objective Belgrade television station out of STB. My ambitions were even greater, that STB with its professionalism and technical possibilities would outgrow its local boundaries. I admit, I was wrong to believe those promises. The city SPS party, headed by the newly appointed and power hungry Ivkovic, attacked both me and Studio B, seizing upon it for narrow-party and personal interests, turning it into another state-controlled RTS channel. My associates and I were forced to withdraw. As far as the GSB strike is concerned, each mayor shall employ all permissible political means to combat a strike in such an important public utility service, such as transport in the capital city.

What will you do in future?

All that I had done so far.

Will you be "down-graded" from the function of president of the Basketball Union of Yugoslavia (KSJ)? Here, if a person is "disputable", he is usually "disputable" in everything.

At the last meeting I received full support from KSJ which shows that I am not disputable in their eyes. As for the politicians who claim that I am disputable even in basketball, I say - let's play ball. But only if we play according to the rules.