ZAGREB, March 23 (Hina) - Croatian Parliament President Vladimir Seks on Monday called on the presidents of clubs of deputies to try and reach an agreement about changes regarding the registration list for today's question time, which
started much later than planned due to the protests of the Opposition.
ZAGREB, March 23 (Hina) - Croatian Parliament President Vladimir Seks
on Monday called on the presidents of clubs of deputies to try and
reach an agreement about changes regarding the registration list for
today's question time, which started much later than planned due to
the protests of the Opposition.#L#
The fifth session of the Croatian parliament started on Tuesday
morning with a half-hour recess due to protests of the Opposition over
the large number of Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) MPs who signed up
for question time.
All Opposition clubs of deputies expressed dissatisfaction with the
current way of signing up for question time. They said that about 30
of a total of 40 MPs who signed up for the question time came from the
ranks of the ruling HDZ.
The Opposition claims that because of that, their MPs have very little
time to ask the government questions.
The president of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) club of deputies,
Ivica Racan, said that the current practice of asking questions was
seriously compromising the Sabor, adding that question time was absurd
because questions would be asked by a party that supported the
government.
Opposition parties believe that the parliament's Rule Book needs to be
changed.
Seks proposed to the head of the Committee on the Constitution and the
Rule Book to appoint a task force which would include representatives
of all clubs of deputies and independent MPs, who would draw up
amendments to the parliamentary Rule Book by the next session.
This is how the morning part of the session ended which according to
the Rule Book should have been used for question time -- during which
MPs ask government members questions.
Prime Minister Ivo Sanader joined the debate by saying that the
government did not wish to obstruct question time, adding that
government members were ready to answer any question.
The sitting finally resumed after noon with question time. MPs agreed
to ask government members 25 questions -- Opposition will ask 14 and
the ruling Croatian Democratic Union 11 questions.
(Hina) it