ZAGREB, February 2, 2019 – Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Friday commented on classified information leaks and of the fake photographs purportedly showing Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Tolušić, saying that everything will be investigated.
Plenković underscored that it is necessary to find out why somebody has been disseminating doctored photographs to the media in an effort to besmirch someone. “As far as the doctored photos are concerned that were supposed to result in defaming the deputy prime minister, his private life, integrity, family and in that way, additionally impact the destabilisation of the government, I think we can put two and two together,” he said.
The press asked the prime minister what could happen now that the parliamentary committee had received the Security and Intelligence Agencies (SOA) report and after the finalisation of an investigation in that case and where information leaks to the media were coming from, not just in the Tolušić case but with the purchase of Israeli jets too.
“With regard to information leaks, we will check how that information ended up in the media. I think that it isn’t good for information to be leaking, but information was leaking prior to this government too,” he said.
Asked to comment on whether the Živi Zid party and the recent events surrounding that opposition parliamentary party were pernicious, Plenković responded, “they don’t interest me at all,” however, he did say that this was a good opportunity for voters to clearly see the nature of such movements.
“Tendencies by parties that don’t have a sound political platform, don’t have a clear idea of what they want but have a destructive approach, aren’t useful,” he said.
Asked whether perhaps large political parties were to blame for Živi Zid’s popularity, Plenković said that he has been responsible for leading the Croatian Democratic Union since July 2016 and that if there is anything he especially strives for it is that there is no demagogy, no moves that could possibly have an effect on groups of that nature growing.
More news on the face photos scandal can be found in the Politics section.
