By: Andrej Žitnik (Nova24tv.si)
It is now clear that the government apparently got scared of the 27,000 heads of a crowd of disappointed pensioners who – if Janša’s coalition was still in power – would have received a Christmas bonus, and their salaries would not have been reduced in January, as Golob’s government did. Therefore, the current authorities, hoping to appease them, offered them a “consolation prize”.
Pensions will be regularly adjusted by approximately five percent this month, Gibanje Svoboda party predicts. The exact amount of the adjustment will be known on Thursday when the Council of the Institute for Pension and Disability Insurance will decide on it at a meeting. It is important that this was not announced by the government, but rather by the ruling political party, which is a sign that they have figured out what kind of snowball can develop from pensioner protests.
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Of course, it is still a disgraceful regular adjustment that will be eaten up in no time by the still ongoing hyperinflation. The leader of the pensioners’ protest movement, Pavel Rupar, wrote on Facebook that such an increase is a shame.
5.4%… SHAME!!! OH NO!!! NOT THAT MUCH. 5.2%??!!! share, share, share!!!
OUR NEW BASELINE REQUIREMENTS:
– ALL THE SAME 250 EUR PER MONTH FOR PENSION FROM JANUARY 1ST, 2023 UNTIL THE NEW PENSION REFORM IS ACCEPTED;
– FREEZING OF RETAIL FOOD PRICES AS IN NOVEMBER 1ST, 2022!!!
Someone will get 14.43 euros; someone will get 220 euros. THEY ARE MAKING FOOLS OF PENSIONERS!!!
WE ARE GOING TO FIGHT FOR DIGNITY, WE HAVE NOTHING MORE TO LOSE!!!
It is a routine increase after pensions were cut in January
It should not be forgotten that regular adjustment does not mean a systematic increase in pensions and that the government has already reduced pensioners’ salaries in January compared to November and December. The government also repealed the Long-Term Care Act and postponed its implementation indefinitely into the future.
As MEP Romana Tomc wrote: “During the government of Janez Janša and the SDS party, pensioners received higher pensions, solidarity allowances, new homes for the elderly, the Office of Demography, and the systemic regulation of long-term care. During the government of Robert Golob, they will get higher bills and higher prices in homes.”
By raising the minimum wages completely unrealistically, the government completely destroyed the balance in the public sector and caused the predicted avalanche of rising prices for kindergartens, homes for the elderly and long-term care services. While far-left NGOs received hundreds of millions of euros, pensioners were second-class citizens for the authorities.
The government is afraid of the protesters
It is increasingly clear that the government is afraid of disaffected protesters. News of the routine and announced 5% regular adjustment was sent to the media as salvation for pensioners. In the Gibanje Svoboda party, meanwhile, they also started to establish a senior organisation within the party, a kind of internal Desus. Meanwhile, Nika Kovač and her “research institute” started sharing cheap socialist slogans about pensioner poverty (which is actually caused by the government they helped elect, but they do not say that). The protests seem to be working, even if they want to silence the pensioners with crumbs.
Of course, they will not succeed, but it is clear that it has been shown for the first time that Robert Golob is not the king and that the people still hold power in Slovenia. When he is not satisfied with the authorities, he replaces them in the elections. Now it is important that businessmen, workers in the private sector, working students and also employers join the angry pensioners at the next protests. We have all suffered 9 months of pure socialism together and we must all tell the government that it must end, or it will be the end of it.