ZAGREB, June 2, 2020 – Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Tuesday he did not see anything contentious in Minister Tomislav Coric’s decision to revoke a decision for making a new feasibility study for the Krs-Padjene wind park, saying that he does not think Coric would sign something without first checking with experts.
“I don’t see anything contentious in Minister Coric’s decision if you are referring to the 2017 decision. That was based on the same model as for other wind parks,” said Plenkovic during a visit to the Elka company.
He added, however, that he would inspect Environment and Energy Minister Coric’s decision which revoked a previous decision on the need to make an environmental impact study and a general assessment of acceptability for the ecological network for the Krs-Paden wind park.
“It is possible to check everything that needs to be checked. I do not think that Minister Coric would have signed anything without first checking with experts in his ministry,” said Plenkovic.
He said that Coric did not run the decision by him as those are decisions that are in fact made at the ministerial level.
“There are clear distinctions of authority regarding matters that the government decides on and what ministers decide on. The government cannot make all the decisions,” Plenovic said and added that a minimum has to exist with regard to delegating responsibilities and trust.
Asked why such a quick decision was made to penalise former state secretary Josipa Rimac, Plenkovic said that this corruption scandal occurred in real-time during this government’s term which is why the reaction followed immediately.
He confirmed that there is an enormous difference between this case and those involving ministers who left the government.
“Let’s not generalise stories about this government, ministers, and their responsibilities. Of all the political and media- orchestrated quakes aimed at bringing down the government since 2017 (…) when observed at the operational level, where are those cases? Who is being tried for anything?,” asked Plenkovic.
With regard to suspicion of criminal dealings by former public administration minister Lovro Kuscevic, Plenkovic recalled that the case referred to events that occurred while Kuscevic was the mayor of Nerezisce and not a member of the government.
“That isn’t something that had any connection to this government and that is the point,” he said.
Asked whether he was concerned with information leaks regarding investigations by the USKOK anti-corruption office which, according to some claims, is the reason for the sudden arrests in the wind park scandal, Plenkovic said that that is horrifying.
“People who have that information, that can be a very narrow circle of people, that has to come from the State Prosecutor’s Office or the police. They are responsible for that have to find out who is practically compromising their work. I think that is disastrous,” the prime minister said.
