Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic said on Tuesday that Croatia does not differ from other EU countries in which misuse of European Union funds is suspected, saying that wherever there are EU funds, there are also attempts to manipulate those funds.

Asked to comment on the latest action by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), Jandrokovic said that during a recent visit by a member of the European Court of Auditors, Ivana Maletic, she told him that there are no more cases in Croatia of suspected abuse of EU funds than in other EU countries.

“She told me that these are phenomena that occur in all other European countries. Wherever there is European money, there are attempts to manipulate these funds and to spend them outside the law,” Jandrokovic told reporters.

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) reported that, in cooperation with the police, it arrested five people in Croatia on Tuesday on suspicion of abuse of position and authority, committed to the detriment of the EU Cohesion Fund.

In response to a comment by a reporter that the EPPO is more efficient than the State Attorney’s Office, Jandrokovic replied that he did not know. “Look at the statistics, not only about how many cases are initiated but also how many are successfully completed,” he said.