Presevo – Aleksandar Vulin, the Minister of Labour, Employment, Social and Veterans’ Affairs, along with Zoran Stankovic, the President of the Coordination Body for the Municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja, visited the nine-member Destan family in Presevo, which is included in the social protection system and donated them an electric stove.

“It’s up to us to us to provide assistance wherever it is needed, regardless of whether it is Novi Sad, Belgrade or Presevo. As you may see, the government is working on helping everyone, regardless of their ethnic, religious or any other affiliation,” said Minister Vulin.  

Mr. Nemeti Destan has six children and lives in a 15 m2 large room with his wife, children and siste-in-law.  

He also said he was pleasantly surprised by Minister Vulin’s visit and that he didn’t expect any of the governmental officials would think of his family.

“We live on social assistance and on the occasional jobs which I manage to find. In that way, I can earn 100 euroas per month, while we also get social support amounting to 19, 000 dinars.  That’s all we have. Anyone who is able and willing to help us is welcome,” said Mr. Nemeti Destan..

Zoran Stankovic, the President of the Coordination Body, said that Minister Vulin had come to Presevo by the Coordination Body’s invitation and because of the large number of vulnerable families in the municipalities of Presevo and Bujanovac.

He added that they the had talked with representatives of the local self-government, which was led by Presevo Deputy Mayor Skender Destani , with whom they discussed the ways of assisting  the socially vulnerable people and said that one of the proposals was the establishment of a soup kitchen in Presevo for araound 500 people.  

“We also talked about the need for a more efficient treatment of children with special needs, as well as about the facility for the elderly, which there is a great need for,” said Mr. Stankovic.

Mr. Stankovic also said that, over the last two months, the state, through that body, had earmarked half a million eauros to subsidize small and medium-sized enterprises in those three municipalities in southern Serbia.

He recalled that the Government had awarded scholarships to 307 students from the municipalities of Bujanovac and Presevo and announced that 30 top students would soon get scholarships.  

After visiting the Destan family, Minister Vulin and Mr. Stankovic spoke with representatives of the municipality of Presevo, the Governor of the Pcinj District Budimir Mihajlovic, the Head of the Centre for Social Work in Presevo Nazmi Jashari, the Head of the National Employment’s Branch Office in Vranje Darko Jankovic and with the Head of the Retirement and Disablity Insurance Fund’s Branch Office Nebojsa Trajkovic.

Source: Serbian Broadcasting Corporation, Jugpress and Coordination Body