"Democracy means procedure. There is no democracy without procedure and the present situation is a proof that we are not yet a law-based state," Mesic said on Wednesday, asked to comment on statements by Andrija Hebrang that accusations targeted against the then Defence Minister Berislav Roncevic about possible wrongdoings in the trucks purchase were politically motivated.
On Monday, representatives of a parliamentary majority sitting on the commission investigating the said purchase of army trucks, concluded that in 2004 the Defence Ministry had bought trucks in line with the law, that there was no corruption in that purchase, and that the then Defence Minister Berislav Roncevic was slandered.
Five deputies of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and its junior coalition partner - the Croatian Peasants' Party (HSS) - convened on that occasion to explain that this was a continuation of a session the Commission of Inquiry began last Monday. They also accused the commission's chairman, Nenad Stazic of the strongest opposition Social Democratic Party (SDP), of having concluded last week's session contrary to to regulations and of having tried to procrastinate the commission's work through the entire summer.
Andrija Hebrang of the HDZ said at a news conference that representatives of the Opposition could not stand the truth which was why they had left the commission.
Hebrang said that according to the findings of the commission, the invitation for tenders for the provision of trucks was cancelled in accordance with the public procurement law, that the entire procedure had to be classified on the order from the Armed Forces' supreme command, and that direct deal was in compliance with the law.
Hebrang believes that in the event the majority in the national parliament (Sabor) adopts these conclusions "the European Commission will no longer ask questions about the alleged corruption in that purchase".
Later on Monday, Stazic labelled those conclusions as unlawful as they were adopted at a session which, he said, members of the parliamentary majority held contrary to the rule book.
President Mesic said today that regardless of findings by the state auditors for him it was obvious that somebody should be held responsible for the developments regarding the purchase of trucks.