Most has initiated a no-confidence motion against Andrej Plenković's government over the hazardous waste scandal in Lika. The author of Hrvatski glasnik wonders whether there are 76 people in the Parliament ready to put the state before party interests, and what would even come after a potential fall of the government.
Croatia could be on the brink of a political turning point, where the question is not just about who holds power, but also about what kind of country we want to build afterward. The immediate trigger is that Most has initiated a procedure for a no-confidence vote against Andrej Plenković's government due to the hazardous waste scandal in Lika. To even start the procedure, a minimum of 31 MPs is needed, while 76 votes are required to bring down the government.
And that's where the real story begins, writes Berislav Mlinarević in an analysis for Hrvatski glasnik published on August 13, 2026. Is there currently in the Croatian Parliament a group of 76 individuals willing to put national interests ahead of party calculations, personal positions, and political futures? Because Croatia no longer has the luxury of another failure.
For years, we have watched a state suffocating in the inefficiency of parts of its institutions, ministries, and administration. One scandal follows another, and accountability is increasingly lost; ministers replace each other, but the system remains largely the same. It was only a matter of time before something exploded somewhere. Lika could be that point.
Any eventual vote of confidence in the government will be much more than a simple show of hands. Will we witness political horse-trading again? Will there be sudden shifts in positions, political deals, and votes that gain new value overnight? What is the value of a single vote in the Parliament today? How much is a ministerial seat worth? How much a position in a management board or supervisory committee?
"Politicians, what price your souls?" Mlinarević asks. "Because there are moments when a politician is no longer just voting on the government. They are voting on their own character."
If this government loses power, what comes next? It is not enough to bring down Andrej Plenković. We need to know what follows. The last thing Croatia needs is to replace one political coalition with another and, after a few months, continue down the exact same path.
Croatia needs a strong government, a small but competent state leadership, a professional administration, clear goals and deadlines, and personal accountability for every minister. But at the same time, it needs an independent judiciary, free media, parliamentary oversight, and the ability to replace any government through elections. This is not dictatorship, but what the author calls an enlightened, responsible, and developmental state.
A country where a minister fails to explain over four years why a certain thing was not done. A state where directors of public companies are chosen based on merit, not party affiliation. A country where courts must respect deadlines, the administration must serve citizens, and the economy must become more important than political administration.
Damir Vandelić has for years publicly emphasized the need for increased efficiency, reforms, reduced spending, and restoring trust in institutions. His political proposals can be supported or rejected, but they should be seriously discussed in public, not ignored.
"Croatia does not need an absolutist. It needs a statesman. That is why Croatia does not actually need enlightened absolutism. It needs what was valuable from that historical concept: knowledge, determination, responsibility, and the ability to implement reforms, without absolutism, with full democratic control of power," Mlinarević concludes.
It is possible that right now is the opportunity to see if there are enough people in the Croatian Parliament who think beyond the next elections. Most is currently collecting signatures from other MPs and clubs to convene an extraordinary session and initiate a no-confidence vote against the government.
If a vote takes place, every raised hand will carry its weight. And every lowered one as well. Because Croatia does not have much time left for the wrong people, wrong policies, and another lost decade.
"This time, the question is not just whether a government can fall. The question is: Can a state finally rise after it?"
