Ahead of the emergency session of the Environment Committee on hazardous waste in Gospić, leaders of the SDP, Možemo!, GLAS, DOSIP, and Centar held a joint press conference with sharp accusations against the government.
Ahead of the emergency session of the Parliamentary Committee on Environment and Nature, convened due to the case of hazardous waste disposal in Gospić, part of the left and centrist opposition gathered. A joint press conference was held at 3:30 PM, half an hour before the session began, by the leaders of the SDP, Možemo!, GLAS, DOSIP, and Centar, with the key message being that removing HDZ from power is the only solution.
SDP president Siniša Hajdaš Dončić was the first to address journalists, emphasizing that the opposition does not have enough votes in Parliament to call a session on its own. "Nothing is sacred anymore-not water, not people, not forests. Everything is done for the benefit of HDZ. We are aware that the opposition does not have 76 votes and cannot call a session of Parliament," he said.
Hajdaš Dončić called on the Speaker of Parliament to convene an emergency session to agree on remediation and identify those responsible. "The only institutions that can oversee hazardous waste are the Ministry, customs, and the inspectorate, and all of that is controlled by Andrej Plenković, who bears political responsibility," he said. He concluded that "this is not a party issue or an identity issue; this is a matter of common sense, and a matter of a better and healthier Croatia."
Možemo! leader Sandra Benčić presented two sets of demands signed by the opposition. The first pertains to the urgent remediation of illegal dumpsites across Croatia, from Gračac, Benkovac, Pazin, Poznanovac, Slavonia to Istria. "That is why we need an emergency session of Parliament, that is why we need a budget rebalance to secure funding, and that is why we need a political decision to install a waterproof liner now so that leachate does not further contaminate our groundwater," she said.
The second set of demands calls for the government's resignation. "They represent a clique in power that has literally begun poisoning our soil, our water, and ultimately our people," Benčić emphasized, adding that the amount of imported waste has increased during Andrej Plenković's government. "That is a picture of what HDZ has done to Croatia in 35 years," she concluded.
Centar leader Marijana Puljak compared the situation to the American series 'The Sopranos.' "Here in Croatia, we are experiencing what was described in that series-that the mafia manages and controls waste, and profits handsomely from it, by bribing inspectors to turn a blind eye," she said.
Puljak also criticized Prime Minister Plenković, saying that he "boasts for the 11th year about the incredible achievements of his government," while failing to remediate hazardous waste. Her key message was: "The only environmental measure for this country, the only sanitary measure, is removing HDZ from power."
GLAS leader Dalija Orešković pointed to banners reading 'Domestic traitors' and 'We will punish high treason.' "HDZ is the one that has occupied Gospić, Lika, and Croatia with poison. Is there truly greater high treason? Is there a greater crime than poisoning your own country and your own people like this? No occupier has ever done that," she said.
Orešković concluded with a threat of escalation: "If this day does not become a turning point, we will call on citizens to take to the streets in mass protests."
Meanwhile, government sources announced that the water in Gospić is safe. Health Minister Irena Hrstić stated before the Committee session that "the water in Gospić is safe to drink, and the latest findings further confirm its health safety." The Ministry of Environment and Green Transition also announced that "water for human consumption is safe to drink" and that the FZOEU has opened a new procurement procedure and issued a call for waste in bags.
