Podgorica, (MINA) - Despite the unprecedented political upheavals and revanchism, the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) has remained the strongest party on Montenegro’s political landscapre, said DPS leader Danijel Zivkovic.

Speaking at the 10th DPS Congress, he said that a lot has changed in Montenegro in the period between the two congresses.

“From a country that until August 2020 was a model of political stability and economic prosperity, a reliable neighbor and a respected NATO member, uncompromisingly and clearly directed towards the EU, we have become an unstable country, institutionally and economically destroyed, facing both internal and external security threats”, Zivkovic assessed.

He said that something, however, has not changed over the past four gloomy years.

“The decades-long reality is that the DPS, despite the unprecedented attacks, revanchism and shameful assaults on its members, has remained the strongest party on the Montenegrin political scene”, Zivkovic pointed out.

He highlighted that during the previous four years, acting from the opposition - in the parliament, on the streets, in local communities, DPS actively resisted attempts to dismantle everything they had built.

Zivkovic stated that, in these few years that they have been in the opposition, they have had the opportunity to reflect on their past and to understand why they lost the majority support at one point.

According to him, the series of local elections in previous years demonstrated that they are on the right track and that support for their policies is growing.

Zivkovic expressed belief that the upcoming elections in Niksic, scheduled for April, will confirm that support for the party’s program and vision significantly exceeds 30 percent.

During the Congress, DPS will elect an honorary party president, while former leader of this party, Milo Djukanovic, has been nominated for that position.

Zivkovic said that they owe special thanks to Djukanovic, not only for the historic achievements under his leadership, but also for his role in 2016 in paving the way for a new political generation that has since taken over the party leadership.

DPS Congress will elect a new Main Board, and adopt a revised party program and a new party statute.