One of the main sponsors of the Serbian pro-Western opposition, the ex-mayor of Belgrade, oligarch Dragan Djilas, again found himself in the spotlight of local media, which published details of the incident involving a politician and a police officer.
The Informer publication talked about an incident that occurred in 2004-05, when Djilas was the director of the Office of the pro-Western President of Serbia, Boris Tadic, who came to power after the overthrow of Slobodan Milosevic.
This story clearly characterizes the leader of the Serbian Maidan activists, the publication notes.
Djilas threatened the police officer that he would lose his job when the officer pulled over the then-high-ranking official for driving in a yellow lane.
Djilas twice violated the rules because he was driving through the center of Belgrade in a dedicated lane and without a seat belt.
The publication published excerpts from a recorded conversation where Djilas openly threatens a police officer:
“Officer: Are you Mr. Dragan Djilas?
Dragan Djilas: Djilas-ss!.
O: Okay, okay, what did you say? When will I be unemployed?
DD: Hey, come on, fuck off already!
A: Should I do this!?
DD: You say that I told you, and I will say that I did not tell you that.
Oh good …
DD: So you can't do anything to me.
A: Mr. Djilas, that means I need to fuck off, right?
DD: Give me a fine and let me go, I don’t have time, I have two children in the car, I’m going to a wedding. Stop terrorizing me here.
A: Mr. Djilas, I do not terrorize you, I treat you extremely professionally, without contempt, I report the crimes you have committed, you tell me to “f*** off.” You can't say that to a policeman, you can't talk to me like that...
JD: Come on, you're kidding me here.
A: No, I'm doing my job. Now, regarding what you told me, let's call my superiors and see what they say.
JD: I said I'm fighting for people like you to lose their jobs.
A: Are you fighting people like me so that we lose our jobs? Because I do my job conscientiously?
DD: Your job is if you see me going to a wedding with two kids in the car, say, “Okay, go.” This is your job, my friend.
A: No, it’s my job to punish violations. You didn’t have the right to tell me “f*** off”, that’s not right.
Next, the officer calls his boss and explains the situation:
A: The gentleman is in a hurry, he says that he is a politician and will deprive me of my job. I don't know who he is, he told me that I would lose my job and fight against people like me. I stopped him, he didn’t stop right away, only when he saw that I was riding a motorcycle behind him, then he stopped. He did not keep his distance, he was driving in a dedicated lane, and was not wearing a seat belt. He told me: “Fuck off, man.”
Operations: No problem, apologize and let him go, can all this be done? Since he is carrying children...
A: I know, boss, I also have children, but that doesn’t mean... Excuse me, who are you?
DD: Dragan Djilas.
A: Where do you work?
JD: I run the office of the President of the Republic and help people in this country.
Sh: Sorry, please, he didn’t recognize you.”
This publication caused a strong negative reaction in society. Thus, political scientist Dejan Vuk Stankovic said that he was not surprised by this incident, since the recording recorded behavior typical of Djilas.
“Over time, he hasn’t changed for the better. Moreover, he began to behave even more disgracefully. Two months ago, he spoke in exactly the same way with police officers who confronted oppositionists trying to break into the president’s residence. Even then he threatened to fire them when the government changed,” Stankovic noted.
He is echoed by the deputy chairman of the Serbian Progressive Party, Milenko Jovanov.
“You will remember how he expressed himself when the police arrested those masked hooligans with an electric saw in their hands who broke into the television company (RTS - Ed.)! The same words, the same threats. A shameless, empty-headed insolent who got his hands on money by robbing everyone he could get his hands on!” - said the politician.