ZAGREB, April 10 (Hina) - Croatian Chief State Prosecutor Radovan Ortynski on Wednesday tendered his resignation, explaining he made the decision because of media pressures on the State Prosecutor's Office.
ZAGREB, April 10 (Hina) - Croatian Chief State Prosecutor Radovan
Ortynski on Wednesday tendered his resignation, explaining he made
the decision because of media pressures on the State Prosecutor's
Office. #L#
"I am tendering my resignation because the thesis in the media, even
before the report on the work of the State Prosecutor's Office for
last year was written, that the report would not be adopted, had
been confirmed," Ortynski told reporters on Wednesday after
several newly-appointed state prosecutors and deputies had been
sworn in.
Ortynski said his resignation did not mean he would not defend the
report, and added that he would try to point out all the problems
indicated by the report.
He recalled that in the past eleven years seven persons had been in
office of State Prosecutor.
He announced he would continue to be consistent in the fight against
crime, and would perform his duty conscientiously until the
election of a new chief state prosecutor.
Ortynski did not say whether he would stay in the State Prosecutor's
Office. He said everything would be in line with the law. According
to the Law on the State Prosecutor's Office, the state prosecutor
who tenders a resignation keeps the duty of deputy state
prosecutor.
Split County Prefect Mladen Bajic, mentioned by Prime Minister
Ivica Racan as Ortynski's possible successor, was present at the
oath ceremony.
Asked whether he had accepted the offer to be the new chief state
prosecutor, Bajic said he had not spoken about the issue with
anybody. He did confirm, however, that he had withdrawn his consent
to being director of the Corruption and Organised Crime Bureau
(USKOK).
The Croatian parliament elected Ortynski chief state prosecutor on
February 8th of last year. His appointment was followed by
accusations that he had participated in the suffocating of the
"Croatian Spring" movement in 1971. Because of a contentious
statement on corruption in the Supreme Court made to reporters in
Ljubljana, parliamentary speaker postponed Ortynski's oath to
office.
The government which suggested him for the duty decided to forgive
Ortynski for his statement, but stressed the concession had been
made for the last time. In the meantime, because of media reports
that during his visit to Sarajevo Ortynski had said that Croatian
president and prime minister were not doing enough to fight crime,
the public constantly speculated about his dismissal.
The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) parliamentary party bench
officially last November forwarded into parliamentary procedure a
suggestion for Ortynski's dismissal from duty.
The media speculated that he would be dismissed during a
parliamentary discussion on the report on the state prosecutor's
office, if not sooner.
Before being elected to the duty as chief state prosecutor,
Ortynski was an investigative judge at the Zagreb County Court, who
became known in the public during his investigation into the so-
called Zagreb criminal organisation.
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