"Last night I immediately called Minister Božinović to ensure that the Ministry and police take all the necessary measures and investigate the matter so that we see what happened and take appropriate decisions, because Croatia, as a country governed by the rule of law, respects its own laws and international rules. We do not want any actions that might be connected with the state and that are not in accordance with our legal system," Plenković said at a cabinet meeting.
"We have a duty to protect our border and prevent illegal migration. We appreciate the role of the Croatian police in protecting the border in the last few years, after our continent has become a destination for migrations, which are often illegal and led and organised by smugglers who benefit from the misfortunes of many people who for various reasons left their homes," he added.
78.6% of Croatians infected with coronavirus over the past week were not vaccinated
"What is indicative and very important is that of these new cases as many as 6,977 or 78.6 percent of the people infected in the last seven days were not vaccinated, which is a ratio of 1 to 4," the prime minister said, once again appealing to people who are still reluctant to get vaccinated to do so.
He said that 3,467,940 doses of vaccines had been administered to date. A total of 1,842,185 people have received one dose, which is 54.4 percent of the adult population, while 51.1 percent of adults have been fully vaccinated, he added.
Croatia has so far donated 710,000 doses of vaccines and will continue to donate to help countries that do not have enough vaccines to protect their citizens, Plenković said.
The prime minister also commented on the new Conflict of Interest Prevention Bill, which includes a lot of improvements and makes the process of establishing a conflict of interest faster and more transparent.
"As for the principles of action, Article 5 remains and the Conflict of Interest Commission will be able to apply it in accordance with the rulings of the High Administrative Court. This article is a sort of a helping instrument, and it complies with the purpose of the Commission. The Commission is not an ethical, but an administrative body," Plenković said, adding that the bill fully incorporated recommendations from the European Commission and the Council of Europe.
Text: HINA