MINISTER ACCUSES EX-MAYOR OF HAMPERING HOUSE-BUILDING PROGRAMME

ZAGREB, Feb 22 (Hina) - Public Works and Construction Minister Radimir Cacic on Friday accused former Zagreb mayor Milan Bandic of resorting to demagogic imputations to hamper the realisation of the government's subsidised house-building programme (POS), for which 18,600 families in the capital have submitted requests. "It is perfectly clear to everyone who submitted the request that incoherent statements like, 'we shall use more cost-effective building', do not bode well and represent a mere throwing of sand in the eyes and an attempt to obstruct the realisation of a quality programme," Cacic told reporters. Bandic has announced a new model for the building of flats in Zagreb under which flats would be 10-15 percent cheaper than under POS. Commenting on this, Cacic said that Zagreb appeared to be willing to give free construction land for that model but would not even sell land for the government programme. Cacic maintains new elections in Zagreb would ruin POS, which he said should have nothing to do with politics as it represented the interests of the state and the citizens. According to the minister, the whole crisis of the Zagreb city authorities, in which the Social Democratic Party (Bandic) and the Croatian People's Party (Cacic) are coalition partners, was a game Bandic played to run for mayor again. Cacic also said he had no intention of apologising to Bandic for a statement about corruption in the Zagreb city authorities. (hina) ha sb