April the 5th, 2024 – This week in Croatian politics, the president has been openly accused of violating the constitution, the prime minister’s TikTok career hits the ground running, and more.
“milanović is violating the constitution”
As Index vijesti/news writes, political scientist Berto Šalaj and communications expert Nikolina Borčić commented on the pre-election campaign ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections. Šalaj believes that we are entering into an unusual campaign and a rather different situation in Croatian politics than we’re used to.
“We’ve got a situation where President Zoran Milanović is openly violating the Constitution. He’s also openly violating the warning issued to him by the Constitutional Court. This in itself isn’t good and could take us in a direction that isn’t good for democracy. On the other hand however, his entry into the political ring really made these elections uncertain in terms of the potential results,” he stated.
“We see public opinion surveys, which show that the difference between HDZ and SDP has decreased. It’s hard to know what the outcome will be,” he said, claiming that the current situation in Croatian politics, as well as the looming elections, are all fuelling HDZ and Andrej Plenković to talk even more about their achievements.
Plenković calls milanović “irrelevant”
Index vijesti/news reports that PM Andrej Plenković has referred to President Zoran Milanovic as “irrelevant” and that he doesn’t want to even bother commenting on him. This was expressed by the prime minister during his attendance at an Easter Mass led by the Archbishop of Zagreb.
He then made statements to the media. He first wished everyone a happy Easter and said that he intends to spend it with his family. Despite the fact that he flatly refused to talk about the campaign, he did refer to current events in Croatian politics, such as the statement of the Constitutional Court addressed to the State Election Commission (SEC).
“We are not going to talk about the campaign. I can only say that the goal is to regain people’s trust, as we’ve continued gaining it for the past eight years. As for the Constitutional Court, let’s put that aside over Easter. Everyone should follow the instructions of the State Election Committee and the Constitutional Court,” said Plenković, before turning his attention to Milanović:
“This is a man I simply don’t want to comment on. He’s irrelevant. He could have resigned and everything would’ve been different.”
Milanović: If the Constitutional Court annuls the elections, it’s a coup d’état
Index vijesti/news reports that Zoran Milanović laid a wreath and lit a candle in front of the Memorial to policeman Josip Jović on the occasion of the 33rd anniversary of the death of the first Croatian police officer. He then made a statement to the media. He first commented on the warning of the Constitutional Court that he shouldn’t participate in the election process.
He called threats to annul the upcoming elections a coup d’état. “If they dare, then it will be a coup,” he said, repeating that the warning of the Constitutional Court doesn’t apply to him because it isn’t a decision.
“The Constitutional Court can bring great disorder with it and can do what Plenković has been doing for years. It is a beaten path to the mental ruin of Croatian society. But we will change that because the Rivers of Justice are going to flow. I believe you can see how I’m choosing my words here. I’m not talking about mere gangsters anymore, but about political wrecks,” concluded a high-spirited Milanović.
Plenković’s TikTok “career” gets off to a good start
As we reported last week, PM Andrej Plenković recently created a profile on the popular TikTok app, where he stated he would better connect with his followers and exchange ideas for the betterment of Croatia. His first video ended with him spinning a basketball around on his index finger, and he’s since done a Q&A and a “this or that” type video.
In the “this or that” video, where the prime minister is asked what he prefers out of two choices, such as a film or a book, the comment section was filled with comments asking him if he prefers “corruption or corruption”. Other questions came from those asking for him to go live, and those seeking a day less of school per week.
The prime minister isn’t the only figure in Croatian politics to open a TikTok profile, and as Index Magazine reports, Health Minister Vili Beroš also has an account on the social media platform.
