The ruling HDZ party's whip, Branko Bacic, said on Tuesday that parliament was expected to nominate a new public administration minister on Friday, the last day of its sitting before the summer recess.
According to unofficial reports, the new minister, after Lovro Kuscevic’s resignation on Monday, will not be one of the names mentioned in the media, such as state secretaries Darko Nekic and Josipa Rimac.
Bacic said the decision was up to the prime minister. “It is the prime minister’s wish, and I think it would be very good, that the ministry is run by a minister and not a state secretary during the two months that parliament is not in session,” he told reporters.
Bacic said one should wait a few more days to see if a new foreign minister would also be nominated on Friday, given that incumbent minister Marija Pejcinovic Buric has been elected Council of Europe secretary general.
Bacic said it was unlikely that the HDZ Presidency would decide at today’s meeting on the party’s new political secretary after Kuscevic’s resignation to this post too.
Speaking of Kuscevic’s resignation, he said PM Andrej Plenkovic did not give in to an ultimatum by the Croatian People’s Party (HNS), a junior partner in the ruling coalition. He said that rather than give in to ultimatums by any party in the coalition, the HDZ “would go to an early parliamentary election.”
According to Bacic, Kuscevic clearly said he was resigning because “the burden being placed on him” was obstructing the government’s work and he wanted to protect his family.
He said the HDZ, “if we had something against a minister from another party,” would say so to the minister or that party,” and not communicate via the media like the HNS did in Kuscevic’s case.
Bacic said the HNS was staying in the government.
Since Kuscevic is now returning to parliament to the HDZ caucus, reporters asked Bacic how come the damage and burden he was causing the government and the HDZ would not damage and burden parliament. He said an MP’s mandate was “inalienable.”
Bacic went on to say that Plenkovic’s position as HDZ president was firm, that he was doing a “great job” running the government, and that this government was one of, if not the most successful ever, as shown by all important macroeconomic indicators.
Bozinovic: Government has excellent results, there’s no coalition crisis
Speaking to the press in Nasice, Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic said the government was recording excellent results in all segments, “from economic growth, export growth, guaranteeing security for Croatian citizens.”
He said there was no crisis in the HDZ-HNS coalition and that citizens would continue to support the government.
Asked if it was known who would replace Kuscevic, Bozinovic said the prime minister would decide that.
