President Milanović in Komiža: Your results in the absorption of EU funds are impressive
The President of the Republic Zoran Milanović attended a special session of the Komiža Town Council on the occasion of Municipal Day and the Feast of Saint Nicholas.
“I know how things are done here and I know that your results in the absorption of EU funds are impressive,” President Milanović said in his address, noting that Komiža had turned into a thriving tourist community, and citing in that context the construction of a new hotel and the fact that the problem of the local landfill had been resolved. “Year in, year out things are visibly moving forward. I come here relatively often and I can see the differences. The same can be said of Vis, and Komiža and Vis are two similar yet different places,” President Milanović emphasized.
The President once again underlined the great importance of absorbing EU funds. “After ten years of membership in the European Union, we have come to the point of concluding that it’s all about the money. In the European Union, in the system we have become part of, the ultimate measure of our success comes down to how much of that money we have taken,” President Milanović said, underscoring that money is the key criterion. “The European Union is an alliance founded by the strongest and the wealthiest. Let us not fool ourselves, it was not designed to help the poor catch up or overtake the richest. There is no such charity or altruism in politics or in relations between nations. The alliance is there so that everyone can benefit from it, but mostly the strongest ones. We should be aware of that and this is not a call for intolerance, but simply a request for us to realize what the purpose is of this system. Today, Germany is wealthier and ahead of Greece to the same extent as in 1980. Everyone has moved forward, but the gap has remained the same,” President Milanović clarified.
“Our opportunity – as a small country and small community – is to try and be an exception in that regard and make the most of our membership. There is no reason why people should not live equally well in Komiža or Vis, Hvar or Brač as in Styria. There are not many people here but they know how to work in a way that benefits this particular community and the resources are amazing,” President Milanović concluded.
At the ceremony in Komiža on the occasion of Municipal Day and the Feast of Saint Nicholas, public recognitions and acknowledgements for 2021 were presented and addresses were given by the President of the Komiža Town Council Edo Bogdanović, Mayor of Komiža Tonka Ivčević, envoy of the Split-Dalmatia County Prefect and Mayor of Vis Ivo Radica, and envoy of the Minister and Assistant Minister for Islands in the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds Tajana Huzak.
Ahead of the special session, President Milanović visited the newly opened Komiža preschool. Adviser to the President of the Republic for Human Rights and Civil Society Melita Mulić was alongside President Milanović.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Filip Glas