Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor said in Parliament on Wednesday that spokesman for the government Mladen Pavic had made his statement that some opposition parties had organised and financed violent protests in Zagreb based on telephone calls made by citizens, adding that the confirmation of that was the fact that the head of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) youth forum in Dubrovnik said that "he paid what he paid".
"Asked by reporters about phone calls and emails sent by citizens, the spokesman said what he said, he did not name a single party or a single individual, but he stated the fact which later proved to be true, namely that the head of the SDP youth forum in Dubrovnik said that 'he paid what he was paid'," the prime minister told Milanka Opacic of the SDP.
At the start of Question Time in parliament, the SDP deputy criticised the prime minister for failing to show up in parliament after the Opposition had been asking her for weeks to come to parliament and explain Pavic's statement. Opacic said that the fact that the PM had failed to show up in parliament or distance herself from Pavic's statements meant that this was Kosor's personal position and the position of her government. Opacic wanted to know if Kosor continued to advocate this position.
The fact that Opacic addressed her as Mrs Kosor and not the prime minister, Kosor interpreted as the confirmation that the SDP had called her to parliament as a private person "and we know who can call prime minister and government members to parliament."
Kosor stressed that every party in Croatia had "the right to fight for its objectives any way it could", telling the opposition "I see that the seats have been divided a long time ago".
Opacic said she expected a more serious answer from the prime minister. "Your vanity and arrogance towards parliament was also a trait of your predecessor. Given that you are his loyal student, I am not surprised at anything," said Opacic.
