Until now, it was known: if the Fiscal Council writes something - that's it.
The Fiscal Council was not silent. Nor was he involved in politics. He was probably the only remaining institution with a backbone, and he was just doing his job - evaluating budget proposals, rebalancing, fiscal strategies, writing research papers, proposals to the Government of Serbia and analyses.
Those cold, precise, extensive, but concise and clear analyses, with praise for the work of the authorities where they belong, with much more frequent criticism, also only where criticism was needed, were an absolute treasure for every journalist and for the interested public.
The amount of knowledge and information that an economic journalist could extract from the proceedings of the Fiscal Council was incredible.
Faithful readers of the "edition" of the Fiscal Council, even if they never dealt with any economic topic, could acquire quite solid knowledge, not only about what is appropriate in the budget and what is not appropriate, but also about the most diverse - and painful - economic issues: what are we investing money in, and what at the same time is gaping at us like an abyss (hint: education, environment), why is our economy not growing as much as it could (hint: corruption), where is it going EPS, where is Air Serbia going, why is inequality higher in us than in Europe, what were we able to spend the wasted two billion euros on during covid...
But why such an introduction? And why use the past tense?
The answer to these two questions is simple. This was the Fiscal Council until now, while its president was prof. Pavle Petrović. And that - there is every chance - will not happen from now on, because prof. Petrović, even though his mandate expired after 13 years got fired. And directly from Vučić.
Namely, the President of the State elects the President of the Fiscal Council. And Vučić chose not to choose Pavle Petrović. Rumor has it - and we will get confirmation on Thursday - that he chose someone who, in his professional work, did not deal with macroeconomics for the most part as the president of the Fiscal Council.
There are still great experts in the Fiscal Council. But this, one of the last remaining functioning institutions, will remain without as much authority and quality as the authority and biography of Pavlo Petrović differ from the new president.
It seems, unfortunately, that the difference will be huge.
