In Belgrade today, a memorial service was held at the Temple of Saint Sava for the victims of the Novi Sad train station canopy collapse on November 1 last year — a tragedy born from corruption, negligence, and the incompetence of Vucic’s very own regime.
The ceremony was led by Patriarch Porfirije, who spoke gently about “peace” and “spiritual unity,” while in the front rows under the warm glow of television cameras stood Aleksandar Vucic, Prime Minister Đuro Macut, Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabić, and a whole parade of Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) ministers and officials. Even the president’s son, Danilo Vučić, made an appearance perhaps to complete the picture of “national humility.”
According to pro-government media, a “large number of citizens” gathered outside the temple likely mobilized, as usual, by party structures to create a stage-managed display of “national unity.”
The Patriarch called on everyone to “find peace within themselves and with one another,” yet no one dared to mention that it was the very lack of accountability, corruption, and political arrogance that led to tragedies like the one in Novi Sad. Words about “love, wisdom, and spiritual growth” echoed through a hall filled with those who have divided the nation more than anyone else.
Vučić, in his familiar melodramatic style, said he would light a candle for each of the 16 victims and urged people to “respect one another.” Ironically, these words came from a man who built his political empire on division, fear, and propaganda.
A ceremony that, on the surface, preached peace but in truth, served as yet another act of political theater for a regime that knows neither remorse nor self-reflection.
