At today's constitutive session of the Council of Regulators of Electronic Media (REM), no president was elected, after two candidates - Miloš Garić and Mileva Malesević - had the same number of votes, N1 announced.
Chairperson Dubravka Valić Nedeljković says that nuances were decisive and that she expects that at the next session, which should be convened soon, by the end of the month, the president and his deputy will be elected.
Valić Nedeljković points out that at today's session she saw constructiveness in all members of the REM Council, and that they agreed on what the president of the Council should have in terms of professional and educational history, experience working in the media and public space, as well as the length of the mandate.
"Until the president or president is elected, the person who is the oldest member of the Council, which is me, will preside until a consensus is established," explains Valić Nedeljković and adds that the president must be elected so that they can start solving issues concerning REM.
Let us remind you that the agenda of today's session was adopted unanimously, and in addition to the election of the president and deputy, the agenda also includes an agreement on the way the Council works.
The session was scheduled after the Assembly's decision on the invalid resignations of four members of the Council. The mandate of the members of the previous REM Council expired in November 2024.
Photo: FoNet / Media CenterMaja Stojanović
Stojanović: Unclear situation in case of a tie vote for the President of the Council
Maja Stojanović from Civic Initiatives tells "Vreme" that due to ambiguities in the regulations, it is difficult to predict what will happen if there is a tied vote, and that if Dubravka Valić Nedeljković remains president as the oldest, her options will be very limited.
"The situation is not clear at all, because the regulations are not in line with the law. The chairman is given a narrow range of powers. In the regulations, for example, it is stated that in the case of a tie vote, the chairman has a decisive role, which cannot be the case - because that is not in accordance with the law. They will therefore have to 'clean up' the regulations so that the work proceeds in accordance with the law," said Stojanović.
He notes that the current composition of the Council will have to try several times to elect a president, so at today's session it will be seen whether there is constructiveness for the election.
It also indicates that there is a possibility that members who are connected to the government can block the election of the president.
"If they block the election today, I expect that a new session will be held where the vote will also be held. If she is not elected even then, Dubravka Valić Nedeljković will continue to preside," notes Stojanović.
He expects that it will be important for the independent candidates that the election for president is not blocked at the session, because different decisions have to be made regarding frequencies and everything else.
"If they do not elect a president, and Dubravka does not receive the powers of the president, another way will have to be found. Otherwise, the council will not be able to start working," concludes Stojanović.
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