After strong public and media pressure, it seems that the concession for the Zlatni Rat beach on the island of Brač might not go to a company with no employees.
The Sport B company has announced that it would give up on the concession for the Zlatni Rat beach in Bol on the island of Brač, reports Večernji List on April 24, 2017.
The company stated that their offer was “rated as the most favourable,” which is why the Assembly of Split-Dalmatia county had made the decision to grant them the concession. They also noted that both “media and political pressures” and “the resistance of the local community” towards their company had jeopardised their ability to “perform activities in the concession area” and that they were therefore unwilling to conclude the concession contract “unless the situation is stabilised.”
“Our offer has been based solely on economic criteria, which means that we protect the public interest far better than those who have usurped the ‘public good’ (without paying an adequate fee),” they said. “In the future, we hope that such important issues will be decided upon by experts, guided primarily by the proper criteria, and not by the political centres of power, without arguments, since the open, developmental and conscientious approach to potential investors is the only possible way forward, if the goal is to create a transparent, advanced and civilised society,” concluded the company in the statement.
The Assembly of Split-Dalmatia County recently decided that the concession for one of the most beautiful beaches on the Adriatic, the Zlatni Rat beach on the island of Brač, would be awarded to the Sport B company from Zagreb which, interestingly, has no employees. According to media reports, the owner of the new concessionaire has good political connections.
The decision has caused uproar among residents, given that until now a local company was managing the beach. Minister of Sea, Transport and Infrastructure Oleg Butković said on Thursday that his Ministry had already requested all the documentation from the Split-Dalmatia County to determine the legality of the procedure on the decision to grant the concession. Prime Minister Andrej Plenković also said that he expected the issue of the concession to be resolved as soon as possible.
The decision to award the concession for Croatia’s most famous beach to a company with no employees has caused controversy just a month before the local elections in May.
