12.02.2018.

The Military Grammar School the Pride of Belgrade and Serbia

The President of the Government Ana Brnabić and Minister of Defence Aleksandar Vulin visited today the hall of residence of the Military Grammar School where works have been initiated on the renovation of pupils’ dormitories, common rooms, toilets, reading room and library.

The President of the Government expressed satisfaction with the fact that one of the best schools in Belgrade and Serbia was finally getting new appearance.

- The Military Grammar School is very important segment of our defence system and it was high time that we invested something in this school because it deserved it – Brnabić said adding that it was a school where more than 20 candidates apply for one vacancy.

According to her words, the children who gain their knowledge at the Military Grammar School continue their further education at the Military Academy and they represent the elite in Serbia.

- It is time we provided better conditions and education for them, since education is one of the highest priorities of the Government. It is important that we expressed gratitude to the defence system, much like we did by increasing salaries and by providing flats – she said pointing out that turn came for infrastructural works in the Military Grammar School and at the Military Academy.

She reminded that the building of the Military Grammar School had been erected in 1936 as a school building for the First Male Grammar School and it served as an example of how the schools should be built in the fatherland.

- It is only now, in cooperation with the city of Belgrade, that we are translating this building into a cultural monument of the city of Belgrade. When we have completed this process, the resources will be permanently allocated for the building as the cultural heritage for its maintenance – the Prime Minister said reminding that it also meant the finalisation of a system that was very important from the aspect of education and defence.

Minister Vulin reminded that in line with the orders of the Supreme Commander of the Serbian Armed Forces, President Aleksandar Vučić, the works had been initiated for the improvement of the quality of life of all the members of the Serbian Armed Forces, and starting from that day, the works had started in the hall of residence of the Military Grammar School as well.

- For this purpose, over 30 million dinars were allocated in the first phase. More important than the material investments is the attitude of the state of Serbia and understanding of the Government that these children represent the elite, that they are the best that we have and that every member of the Serbian Armed Forces is the best that we have – said the minister of defence underlying that there were also those who would later through their education gain diverse knowledge and skills and lead the Serbian Armed Forces and make every citizen of Serbia proud.

According to the words of the minister of defence, the children will have the best possible living conditions in the hall of residence at the Military Grammar School, to the joy of their families and certainly being the pride of the Serbian Armed Forces and the entire state.

- Once you become a member of the security system, you have entered the society of the best, you are the elite, the pride of Serbia, and it is precisely why Serbia is ready to provide the best possible conditions for our children educated for NCO and officer ranks – said the minister of defence and reminded that it was the first such large investment in the building of the hall of residence of the Military Grammar School since the building had been constructed back in 1978.

He pointed out that the pupils of the Military Grammar School and Military vocational high school accommodated in the hall of residence in Humska Street, deserved to live in much better conditions.

- The fruits of the austerity policy led at the time of the Government of Aleksandar Vučić until today are now felt in the time when the Government is being led by Madame Brnabić. We can say that we are capable and that we have resources to make living much better for these children and all those in the defence system – Minister Vulin concluded.

Dean of the University of Defence Major General Mladen Vuruna pointed out that the Military Grammar School was a school which had been lasting for almost half a century, and that many of its pupils were appointed to the highest positions in our armed forces, while some of them continued their career out of the military environment and performed or were performing important jobs both in the country and in many countries of the region.

- The pupils of the Military Grammar School, and since recently of the Military High Vocational School, have at their disposal all the capacities of the University of Defence, so that in that educational cycle that may last up to eight years, they can fully develop all their intellectual and physical capacities – General Vuruna stressed and took the opportunity to call upon the interested boys and girls to apply for the ongoing competitions for the enrolment on the military schools and realise their ambitions at the University of Defence.

- Today’s works that have been initiated pursuant to the decision of Minister of Defence Aleksandar Vulin with the support of the General Staff – as General Vuruna added – are just a part of much wider works carried out in the Military Academy of the University of Defence aimed at raising the quality of living and working conditions of the cadets and pupils – and he stressed that it was not only investment in the University of Defence, but it was an investment in defence capacities of our country.

- We will try through our hard work to justify these investments – General Vuruna concluded.

According to the fourth grade pupil Vanja Stević, the conditions at the Military Grammar School have been at satisfactory level until now, but the planned investments will largely improve the everyday life and work of the two schools’ pupils.

A pupil of the final year Nikola Jović said that he had had an opportunity to see other halls of residence and that he believed that the pupils of the Military Grammar School and Military High Vocational School had better conditions than the majority of civilian pupils particularly when it came to the accommodation.

Head of the Military Grammar School Colonel Miroslav Gvozdenović informed the present about this school, the specificities of the teaching programme, and about the challenges that the school faces.

Speaking about the condition of the infrastructure in the buildings of the Military Grammar School and its hall of residence, Head of logistics of the Military Academy Colonel Zoran Lučić underscored that the complex of the hall of residence of the Military Grammar School was used for the accommodation of the pupils of the Military Grammar School and Military High Vocational School and that it possessed 516 beds.

According to his words, the both complexes, and the buildings in them, from their foundation did not receive significant infrastructural investments, and according to some estimations around 100 million dinars is required to make the conditions adequate for the purpose of these facilities.

He reminded of the ongoing works planned for the maintenance of the building of the hall of residence invested by the Military Construction Centre while the works were conducted by the Military Construction Establishment Belgrade. The planned financial resources amount to 30 million dinars for the works in the ground level including the front plateau, replacement of the woodwork, floors, toilets, painting works, water piping and sewage installations, machine works and electric and power works.

During the tour of the Military Grammar School, the President of the Government and the minister of defence conversed with the pupils about the current living and working conditions in that institution.

State Secretary Bojan Jocić was also present during the tour.

Late in 2017, the Ministry of Defence initiated infrastructural works in the Military Academy in which some 300 million dinars are going to be invested in the next 12 months in order to renovate the alignment plateau, Sports centre, pistol shooting range and interior of the accommodation capacities aimed at improving the living and working conditions of cadets and superior officers who are educated at that high educational institution. The infrastructural works that have been initiated today in the hall of residence of the Military Grammar School are the continuation of systemic investment of the Ministry of Defence in raising the quality of military education so that the Serbian military high schoolers could be educated in accordance with the highest world standards.