Entrepreneur: Serbia Has Been Hurtling Toward Disaster for a Decade

Rodoljub Draskovic (Youtube/Printscreen)

Businessman and entrepreneur Rodoljub Draskovic, who owns the multinational food and drink company Swisslion Group, said on Jan. 27 that all economic indicators show that Serbia has been hurtling toward disaster – both socially and economically – for the past decade.

In an interview for BETA, Draskovic claimed that the regime has demonstrated its ignorance of good business practices by increasing the public debt by over 150 percent compared to 2012.

“This regime is incapable of making the minimal annual payments on the national debt, and instead is taking out loans to pay the interest expenses, which this year alone will amount to over EUR2 billion,” the businessman explained.

According to him, the public sector is in utter chaos, disorganized and over-indebted.

“Two key factors lead to such a [situation in the] public sector: appointing incompetent but politically-appropriate people to management positions, and corruption. Public investments and secret contracts have brought us to the gates of hell. Not a single investment has been based on economic values, productivity and profitability, and that entire burden will fall on the shoulders of future generations,” he said.

Asked about the direst consequences of such policies, Draskovic pointed out that, over the last 10 years, over half a million young experts and highly-qualified people have left the country.