President Milanović calls on citizens to get out and vote: It’s important because the institutions have been stolen and usurped
“Today the presidential election campaign begins and I call on people to prepare for the elections, to get out and vote, not to leave things to chance, and to be at least as agile in numbers and turnout as they were in last spring’s parliamentary elections. It is important, important in the fight for Croatian democracy, popular, civic democracy, and not this institutional one because the institutions in Croatia have been stolen. They have been appropriated, privatized, and this is best seen in the example of what one part, unfortunately, the majority of constitutional judges have done, who are mostly no longer in office today because their mandates have expired,” the President of the Republic Zoran Milanović said in Valpovo today, calling on Croatian citizens to go to the polls because “we have a serious match ahead and nothing is over, we need to fight for it”.
In his address President Milanović stated that the judges violated the Constitution since they extended their own mandates and were judges in their own cases even though this is explicitly prohibited by the Croatian Constitution. He recalled how 14 years ago, as president of the SDP, he personally participated, together with the HDZ and Vladimir Šeks, in negotiating changes to the Constitution. “And you think that everything is clear and that everything is prescribed because it is, not just in context but also in words, content, yet there are still people who believe that they have the right to do what is not written in the Constitution, or what the Constitution almost explicitly prohibits. So this is a fight for Croatian democracy, and the danger in that democracy is Plenković and the people he has gathered around him such as Turudić and the like”, the President noted.
The President of the Republic Zoran Milanović was visiting Valpovo today where he held a working meeting with the mayor of Valpovo and his associates. At the meeting held in the Educational and Interpretation Centre, the mayor of Valpovo Matko Šutalo, deputy-mayor Marko Barišić, the president of Valpovo’s City Council Igor Uranjek, his deputies Dinko Župan and Ana Brajnović, and heads of municipal departments Marko Vuksanić, Zvonko Barišić, Oliver Vazdar and Goran Šimić as well the director of Valpovo’s entrepreneurial centre Vanja Miličević, presented the development projects and plans of the City of Valpovo to President Milanović.
“Today, it is the fourth time in the past few years that I am in Valpovo with the successful, young mayor Šutalo and his team. I see what and how they work despite the obstacles in their way. I like to witness things like this – reconstruction. To be concrete, the Memorial Interpretation Museum, or rather the centre in honour of Matija Petar Katančić, the first translator of the printed Bible into the Croatian language, in Bosnian Ikavica at the beginning of the 19th century. As many of our citizens as possible should be acquainted with this and put it in some kind of historical context. It is important that things like this live, flourish and thrive”, President Milanović stated after the meeting.
President Milanović also commented on the military parade ahead of the next anniversary of Operation Storm, which was announced by Minister Anušić, and agreed that the parade was necessary, indicating he had no intention of banning it, as the former President of the Republic tried to do in 2015. “A president who is spiteful and malicious has ways to ban it if they only have a personal benefit and party interests on their mind. A president can also be a well-intentioned and bona fide participant in the right thing for the state. I am more inclined to the latter,” said President Milanović, recalling that in 2015, when he was Prime Minister, a military parade was also held to mark the 20th anniversary of Croatia’s victory in the Homeland War.
“At that time, a newly minted member of the HDZ, Karamarko’s HDZ, Anušić was in the parade against the parade. I say – fine and in fact, let’s organize it together. I am and will be Commander-in-chief, Anušić is not, but this time he dared to announce it again without me. What should I say now? That I will prevent it? No, I will not, because I think that is the wrong way of thinking,” said the President.
“Therefore, that parade will take place. I would propose it too. However, I cannot organize it on my own without the financial support of the Government. I am Commander-in-chief, not Plenković, not Anušić, we will work on it together in six months’ time and we will organize it to the pride and satisfaction of the Croatian people who welcomed it ten years ago when Anušić was against it, when Vaso was against it, when Karamarko was against it, when Plenković was against it. Now they are in favour. Here, and for that, get out and vote! Let’s fight because these are not people who give their word of honour,” concluded President Milanović.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Marko Beljan