President Zoran Milanovic sent Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic a letter on Monday in which he proposed that Daniel Markic be appointed Acting Director of the Security Intelligence Agency (SOA) within his constitutional and legal powers, the President's Office announced on Tuesday.

The appointment would take effect on 5 May, when Markic’s term at the helm of the SOA expires, and would “take a maximum of two months to appoint the new head of the SOA.”

In his letter, President Milanovic points out that Markic’s term expires on 5 May and adds that given the fact that parliament will be dissolved on 14 March, “the term of the SOA Director will probably end at the beginning of May, at a time when the next government will most likely not yet be formed, so it will not be possible to carry out the legal procedure for appointing the SOA Director.”

“Without any rational explanation, you have rejected my suggestion that now – while you still have the mandate as prime minister before parliament is dissolved – we should appoint the Director and Acting Director of the SOA, as provided for in Article 66 of the Security Intelligence System Act. You have also shown no interest in amending the relevant subsidiary legislation to improve the functioning of the SOA and prevent a repeat of the ‘Turudic case’,” reads the President’s letter to Prime Minister Plenkovic, in which he proposes that Markic be appointed acting director of the SOA.

Milanovic also points out in his letter that, in accordance with the relevant law, he will insist that the director and the acting director of the SOA be appointed at the same time.