Photo: Unsplash Arnaud Jaegers

Da li su nam potrebne političke stranke? Da li je za postojanje demokratije nužno i nepohono postojanje političkih stranaka? Šta je funkcija političkiih stranka? Da li moramo da finasiramo političke stranke?

Lokalni izbori koji će biti održani u Srbiji 2. juna 2024. godine biće 61. izbori od uspostavljanja višepartiskog parlamentarnog sistema.

Na proteklim parlamentarnim  izborima 2022. godine su, prema izveštajima koje su podnele Agenciji za sprečavanje korupcije, političke stranke potrošile ukupno 1.168.088.991,45 dinara. Političke stranke i drugi politički subjekti su te godine u toku izborne kampanje ostvarili prihode u iznosu od 1.086.404.093,25 dinara. Od toga je 80,50 % prihoda iz budžeta. Prošle godine su političke stranke za redovan rad ostvarile prihod u iznosu od 1.764.193.845,35 dinara a u istoj godini su potrošile 1.357.743.102,86 dinara od toga 88, 26% iz javnih sredstava odnosno od  poreskih obeznika Srbije.

Očigleno je da su političke stranke skupa investicija za građane Srbije, a da li su nam potrebne?

Prema članu 5 Ustava Republike Srbije političkim strankama se jemči i priznaje uloga u demokratskom oblikovanju volje građana a prema članu 2. Zakona o političkim strankama politička strankama politička stranka je organizacija građana slobodno i dobrovoljno udruženih radi ostvarivanja ciljeva demokratskim oblikovanjem političke volje građana i učešća na izborima. Postavlja se pitanje da li je građanima Srbije potrebno da im neko oblikuje političku volju? Možda su ipak građani dovoljno zreli da mogu i sami da oblikuju svoju političku volju, posebno ako se uzme da svake godine oblikovanje političke volje  građane Srbije košta oko 2 milijarde dinara a u izbornoj godini još oko 4 milijarde dinara.

Ipak, u celom svetu postoje političke stranke i one su u modernom svetu čvrsto vezane za demokratiju. Da li je baš tako?

Prvi pisani tragovi postojanja demokratije svedoče da  je demoktratija nastala u Atini pre 2500 godina. Prvi Parlament i nastao je u 13 veku u Engelskoj kada je poveljom Magna karta libertatum ustanovljeno Veće 25 barona. Demokratija je postojala tokom srednjeg veka između ostalog u Mletačkoj republici, Dubrovačkoj republici, Republici Ženeva, Republici Đenova čak i papu bira Papska kurija.

Prve političke stranke nastale su u 18 veku u Velikoj Britaniji zvale su se Vigovci i Torijevci. Pre njih politčke stranke nisu postojale kao pojava. To znači da je prvo demokratsko društvo nasalo 2200 godina pre nastanka političkih stranaka, prvi parlament 500 godina pre nastanka političkih stranka i da je Francuska  revolucija izvedena bez političkih stranaka.

Dakle političke stranke same po sebi nisu uslov demoratije niti je njihovo postojanje neophodno za postojanje same demoratije.

Građansko društvo kome Srbija teži ima za cilj da što je više moguće zadovolji potrebe svih svojh građana. Posebna pažnja odbraća se na one članove društva koji ne mogu sami o sebi da se brinu. Ipak, ako govorimo o potrebama dece, sve vannastavne aktivnosti (fudbal, folkor, strani jezik..) plaćaju roditelji iz svog džepa.  Vratimo se sada na pitanje zašto finasiramo političke stranke? Kako ističe prof. Zoran Stoiljković “ bez solidno popunjene blagajne ne može se stabilizovati uticaj političkih stranaka. Održavanje partijske mašinerije – pokrivanje troškova stranačkih prostorija, redovnih partijskih aktivnosti i komunikacije s javnošću, naknada ma kako skromnih, za rad partijskog aparata i funkcionera zahteva zamašna finasijska sredstva“

Rezultat tog je da građani umesto folkora, fudbala i stranog jezika za decu fianasiraju odrasle poslovno sposobne ljude da se ovi bave politikom.

Očigledno je da finasiranje poltičkih partija za građane Srbije predstavlja izuzetno žrtvovanje i odricanje od mnogih drugih potreba.

Da vidimo kakav je rezultat tog odricanja. Zamislimo sledeću situaciju, izbori su sprovedeni pobedila je politička stranka i preuzima vlast na raspolaganju joj stoji 30.000 funkcionerskih pozicija za sva bitna i manje bitna rukovodeća mesta u zemlji. Stoje joj na raspolaganju još i sva javna i javno komunalna preduzeća i javni poslovi i najvažnije stoji joj na raspolaganju budžet i svi prirodni resursi  Republike Srbije. Prema ovom bogatstvu poltička partija koja je pobedila odnosi se kao prema plenu. Prvo na sva bitna mesta u državi, koja su uzgred i dobro plaćena postavlja svoje članove. Zatim, zapošljava u javna i javno komunalna preduzeća ostale članove koje nije mogla da postavi na bitna mesta. Nadalje, namešta tendere za preduzeća čiji vlasnici su članovi njene stranke ili ljudi bliski rukovodstvu stranke i napokon raspolaže budžetom, građanskim zemljištem i resursima države, kojima raspolaže bez da o tome konsultuje građane.

Da li ste to sve građanima Srbije sve to  isplati?

Šta bi bilo kada bi se političke stranke finasirale samo iz članarine?

Nema bavljenja politikom bez pune kase. Političke stranke bi i dalje imale potrebu da imaju prostorjie da održavaju sastanke članova da sprovode politički marketig, s tim što bi im jedini izvor finansiranja bila članarina njenih članova.

Ovakva situacija značila bi da bi da bi koncept funkcionisanja političkih stranaka u Srbiji bio fundamentalno promenjen. Težište moći u stranci bi sa rukovodstva prešlo na članstvo. Članovi bi bili ti koji finansiraju stranku i svesni svoje moći tražili bi od rukovodstva ispunjenje njihovih političkih ciljeva. Ovakva preraspodela snaga dovela bi do toga da bi se u strankama formirale frakcije koje bi se između sebe demorkatskim sredstvima borile za vlast. U tom slučaju bi predsednici političke stranke predstavljali stvarnu demokratsku većinu u stranci.

Zbog budžetskog finasiranja u Srbiji se sada formirala politička elita, rukovodećih ljudi u političkim strankama, koji su birokratizovali stranke i potpuno se odvojili od članstva stranke. Potpuno sigurni u to da će aktivnosti stranke biti finasirane oni nisu spremni da čine bilo kakve ustupke članovima stranke.

Nažalost, iako su namere bile dobre, budžetsko finasiranje političkih stranaka u Srbiji dovelo je do formiranja autoritarnih političkih stranaka koje se bore za vlast kako bi osvajanjem vlasti prograbili resurse a ne da bi na demokratski način upravljali državom u korist građana.

Iz svega prizilazi ako već ne možemo da utičemo na moral i etiku ljudi koji se u Srbiji  bave poltikom onda možemo da odlučimo da njihove aktivnosti ne finasiramo.

Photo: Unsplash Arnaud Jaegers

Do we need political parties? Is the existence of political parties necessary and essential for democracy? What is the function of political parties? Do we have to finance political parties?

The local elections to be held in Serbia on June 2, 2024, will be the 61st elections since the establishment of the multi-party parliamentary system.

In the previous parliamentary elections in 2022, political parties spent a total of 1,168,088,991.45 dinars according to reports submitted to the Anti-Corruption Agency. That year, political parties and other political entities generated income of 1,086,404,093.25 dinars during the election campaign, of which 80.50% came from the budget. Last year, political parties generated income of 1,764,193,845.35 dinars for regular operations and spent 1,357,743,102.86 dinars, 88.26% of which came from public funds, i.e., from the taxpayers of Serbia.

It is clear that political parties are a costly investment for the citizens of Serbia, but do we need them?

According to Article 5 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, political parties are guaranteed and recognized a role in the democratic formation of the will of the citizens, and according to Article 2 of the Law on Political Parties, a political party is an organization of citizens freely and voluntarily united to achieve goals through the democratic shaping of the political will of citizens and participation in elections. The question arises, do the citizens of Serbia need someone to shape their political will? Perhaps the citizens are mature enough to shape their political will on their own, especially considering that every year the shaping of the political will of Serbian citizens costs around 2 billion dinars and in an election year around 4 billion dinars.

However, political parties exist all over the world and are firmly linked to democracy in the modern world. Is that really the case?

The first written records of democracy indicate that democracy originated in Athens 2,500 years ago. The first Parliament was established in the 13th century in England when the Magna Carta Libertatum established the Council of 25 barons. Democracy existed during the Middle Ages in places like the Venetian Republic, the Dubrovnik Republic, the Republic of Geneva, the Republic of Genoa, and even the Pope is elected by the Papal Curia.

The first political parties appeared in the 18th century in Great Britain and were called the Whigs and the Tories. Before them, political parties did not exist as a phenomenon. This means that the first democratic society existed 2200 years before the emergence of political parties, the first parliament 500 years before the emergence of political parties, and the French Revolution was carried out without political parties.

Therefore, political parties are not a prerequisite for democracy, nor is their existence necessary for democracy itself.

The civil society that Serbia aspires to aims to meet the needs of all its citizens as much as possible. Special attention is paid to those members of society who cannot take care of themselves. However, when it comes to children’s needs, all extracurricular activities (football, folklore, foreign language…) are paid for by parents out of their own pockets. Now let’s return to the question of why we finance political parties. As Professor Zoran Stoiljković points out, „without a solidly filled treasury, the influence of political parties cannot be stabilized. Maintaining the party machinery – covering the costs of party premises, regular party activities and communication with the public, and compensations, no matter how modest, for the work of the party apparatus and officials requires substantial financial resources.“

The result is that citizens, instead of folklore, football, and foreign languages for their children, finance adults who are capable of working to engage in politics.

It is clear that financing political parties represents a significant sacrifice for the citizens of Serbia, leading to the abandonment of many other needs.

Let’s see what the result of this sacrifice is. Imagine the following situation: elections are held, a political party wins and takes power, and it has 30,000 official positions at its disposal for all significant and less significant managerial positions in the country. It also has at its disposal all public and public utility companies and public works, and most importantly, it has the budget and all the natural resources of the Republic of Serbia at its disposal. The victorious political party treats this wealth as spoils. First, it appoints its members to all significant, well-paid positions in the country. Then, it employs other members it could not place in significant positions in public and public utility companies. Furthermore, it arranges tenders for companies whose owners are party members or people close to the party leadership, and finally, it manages the budget, public land, and state resources without consulting the citizens.

Is all this worth it for the citizens of Serbia?

What would happen if political parties were financed solely through membership fees?

There is no engaging in politics without a full treasury. Political parties would still need to have premises to hold member meetings and conduct political marketing, with the only source of financing being the membership fees of their members.

This situation would fundamentally change the functioning concept of political parties in Serbia. The focus of power in the party would shift from the leadership to the membership. Members, aware of their power, would demand the fulfillment of their political goals from the leadership. This redistribution of power would lead to the formation of factions within parties, which would democratically compete for power. In this case, the presidents of political parties would represent the true democratic majority within the party.

Due to budget financing in Serbia, a political elite has formed, consisting of leading figures in political parties who have bureaucratized the parties and completely detached from the party membership. Confident that party activities will be financed, they are not ready to make any concessions to party members.

Unfortunately, although the intentions were good, budget financing of political parties in Serbia has led to the formation of authoritarian political parties that fight for power to grab resources rather than to democratically manage the state for the benefit of citizens.

All this implies that if we cannot influence the morals and ethics of people involved in politics in Serbia, we can decide not to finance their activities.

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