The sudden resignation of USKOK anti-corruption office head Vanja Marusic on Wednesday elicited reactions from opposition MPs who said that instead of the bizarre explanation of her decision, they wanted to hear the real reason for her resignation, wondering how it was possible for Marusic to continue working at USKOK after her decision.

Marusic, Head of the Office for the Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime (USKOK), handed in her resignation, citing personal reasons, on Tuesday. It turned out later that the reason is a traffic accident with significant material damage involving her chauffeur who used his official car for private purposes. The damage, the media say, was covered by USKOK which did not ask the chauffeur to refund the money.

SDP MP Misel Jaksic said the explanation for the resignation was bizarre and called for clearer and more transparent answers.

“The question is what the State Attorney’s Office (DORH) and USKOK control mechanisms were doing the whole time, if the police carried out an on-site investigation and how Marusic won a new term despite the case,” he said.

He added that the case was not good for the judicial system and would leave a negative impression about USKOK and DORH, notably in the context of numerous scandals and disputes between the heads of the two institutions.

The prime minister will now try to “tranquilise” the public and say that the situation is stable and calm but this is anything but a normal and stable situation and we expect clear answers, said Jaksic.

‘Marusic’s departure suits PM’

MP Nikola Grmoja (Most party), too, described the reason for Marusic’s resignation as bizarre.

“We will never know the real reason, but it seems one had waited for her to make a wrong move and it seems she was pressured into resigning,” he said.

He added that there was speculation that Marusic wanted to clear her name after she and Hrvoj-Sipek hid the case against former minister Gabrijela Zalac from OLAF, that she wanted to open investigations into PM Plenkovic and Defence Minister Mario Banozic, and that some even said that she was willing to offer a plea deal to former HDZ official Josipa Rimac in exchange for her incriminating Plenkovic, which Hrvoj-Sipek was against.

Grmoja said this confirmed that DORH and USKOK were not functioning and were entirely under Plenkovic’s control.

“Plenkovic is fine with her departure because she was much more willing to launch proceedings against him and his associates than Hrvoj-Sipek or the person to be appointed USKOK director,” he said.

‘Real reason is unknown’

Ivana Kekin (Mozemo! platform) said that in any decent country, an official leaving their post in the middle of their term would give a written and an oral statement, which, she said, Marusic and Hrvoj-Sipek did not do.

The real reason for Marusic’s resignation is not known because personal reasons were cited first, and then it turned out that it involved a cover-up, she said.

“If there was a cover-up, was the relevant procedure conducted? If it was not, why was her resignation demanded, and if the relevant procedure was conducted and revealed a cover-up, how is it possible that Marusic will continue working at USKOK?” asked Kekin.

She said it was interesting that the USKOK head and the state attorney general had different views of corruption cases, notably high-profile ones, such as the Rimac case, noting that the public should be given a clear answer as to whether disagreement on how corruption cases should be dealt with had an influence on Marusic’s resignation.

‘There is a reason why Croatia is among most corrupt EU countries’

Marijan Pavlicek (Croatian Sovereignists) said it was bizarre the USKOK head dared cover up a traffic accident involving her chauffeur and that the damage was paid from the state budget.

“If that is true, the competent institutions will investigate her as well. This shows that there is a reason why we are among the most corrupt EU countries, if people who are supposed to fight corruption are compromised by attempts to cover up car accidents,” he said.

Davor Bernardic (Social Democrats) said the car accident was probably only the motive but not the real reason for Marusic’s resignation and that the case showed there were attempts to use some state institutions for political purposes.

Dario Hrebak (HSLS) said there were two possible offences on Marusic’s part – defrauding the state budget and covering up an accident.

She did her job well but this is a very unpleasant situation and her move is only logical, he said, adding that the coming days would show if there were any new elements in the case.