Plenković: The "Network" affair is dead, Habijan drowned it

“Damir Habijan is an experienced, serious politician, the president of the city organization of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) Varaždin for seven years, a member of parliament, a lawyer and he understands corporate law. He seems stable, calm, even a little unimpressed, someone who will reasonably and rationally approach these tasks,” said Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković will present Damir Habijan at a coalition meeting on Monday at 1 p.m., and then at the HDZ presidency at 4 p.m.

He consulted with his colleagues in the parliamentary majority, everyone will support him, “this is just, a technical matter of confirmation,” said Plenković.

“He will work on tasks of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, it is a huge portfolio, he will work as part of a team. We have meetings every Monday, the government, party leadership, county presidents, and others, everyone knows everything. It's not that we're putting someone in who doesn't follow the game, he's locked in,” said the prime minister.

“We are one team,” he said, referring to the "counting of dismissed ministers". He said that 67 ministers were changed in Macron's government in less than a year. He believes that it is a completely irrelevant topic.

“The government has been stable for an eighth year, we are economically good, we are making social progress, we are achieving strategic goals, we entered Schengen and the euro, built an LNG terminal, in the crisis we covered everything - citizens and institutions, ensured energy independence...,” he said.

He referred to the "two Croatia’s".

“You have us and our political partners; the Government is stable and firm. The agreement for Habijan was reached in 10 minutes. The degree of mutual trust is high. We agree quickly. The law stipulates that ministers can rely on people who are close to them and trusted. People are mostly careful, sometimes there are mistakes, but that's how it is,” Plenković said.

Habijan reached the stage when he can play a game in the executive branch

When asked by a journalist whether Habijan, who is from Varaždin, was chosen according to a regional key, Plenković said that he would have been chosen regardless.

“He has matured and reached the stage when he can play a game in the executive branch, and this is also a great message for the north-west of Croatia and Varaždin County,” added Prime Minister Plenković.

When asked if Habijan understood this as an order or a reward, Plenković answered that he understood it as an opportunity, because becoming a minister does not just happen.

When asked what happened to the opposition's request to dissolve Parliament, he said: "Nothing. We are going to dissolve it, the elections are next year."

Election campaign

The president of the HDZ said that he will not take out a loan to finance the campaign.

“There are frameworks for financing the campaign, we are the frugal generation of the HDZ, we are always in the plus. HDZ saves, doesn't spend on anything it doesn't need, and with donations it will finance everything related to the election without any problems,” he said.

“When everything is over, we won't be in debt to anyone, nor will we take out loans,” added Plenković.

He also commented on tomorrow's elections in Serbia, saying that he would like representatives of the Democratic Alliance of Croats in Vojvodina to get a mandate in the National Assembly again.

“And maybe they will be in the executive branch again. How the elections turn out, who the citizens of Serbia will trust, that is up to them. I cannot speculate at this time. We always work to improve relations and resolve open issues,” said the Prime Minister.

The "Network" Affair

“The affair died, meaning Habijan sunk the affair, it's interesting that you don't ask anymore,” Plenković told reporters.

“In the "Network" affair, the journalist, who was tricked by the adviser, gives information to Grmoja and he fumbles and fumbles and says - I will direct it to Plenky. This affair is the following - that someone abuses his position in the Ministry of Economy, which is an advisor, with a practically corrupt act in an attempt or committed according to the media, to open space for the opposition opens to spit on me as prime minister without argument. Now someone in the opposition wants to attribute this affair to the HDZ, and we are the target and the victim. The key to the affair is that someone is abusing position, giving semi-information to a journalist, who is giving it to the opposition, who is using it for a political attack on me. How can it be an HDZ affair,” he asked.

“In the process of the so-called washing, there is a competition to see who criticized the government more, so as not to accidentally be suspected of some arrangements with ministries that have budgets that they have to spend, say for European projects, so they push the so-called the media dimension, and compete to see who disgusted the Government more, even though they receive money from state ministries or state companies. An absurd and unbelievable situation. Calm the ball a bit, clearly see who played, with whom and on whose account. Whatever happened, it had only one political goal, and that was against the Government,” he added.

He concluded that the whole thing was fabricated and released to the opposition party before the government knew about it.

In connection with the suppression of African swine fever, he announced that from next week, pig slaughtering will be allowed where it was not until now, as well as the marketing of fresh meat with more than 30 million euros in compensation to pig breeders and farmers.

Source: HRT