80-meter flagpole to be built in Belgrade

Responding to criticism from opposition Alliance for Serbia councilor Nikola Jovanovic, who said the same amount that was planned for a 120-meter flagpole was envisaged in the budget for 2019, Vesic told reporters:

"When you put something into the budget, you put the highest possible price you can expect. The price that is obtained for any project is obtained in a tender. It happened to us to received half the price than had been projected."

He said that the static design was now being done and that according to this project, the height of the flagpole will be 80 instead of 120 meters.

"It necessarily means that the price will be, according to the estimates of people with knowledge, maybe twice as low. You never make a budget by putting in the lower price, because you could be short of money and then nobody takes part in the tender - but Mr. Nikola Jovanovic does not understand that," Vesic said.

At the session of the city parliament, Jovanovic said that the budget foresees the construction of a 120 meter flagpole and asked Vesic "how he could say that the flagpole and the price will be lower."

Jovanovic also said that RSD 407 million has been allocated from the budget for this purpose.