OSIJEK, Jan 12 (Hina) - Croatian presidential candidate Drazen Budisa told a pre-electoral rally in Osijek on Wednesday the impending elections should create conditions for making Croatia a prosperous, socially just and democratic
country, integrated with Europe and in which human rights are protected. If elected president, I will protect national independence and the constitutional and law order, Budisa, the candidate of the democratic and social liberal SDP/HSLS coalition which won recent parliamentary elections, said presenting his programme in the eastern Croatian town. He committed that in cooperation with parliament and the government, he would "change the parts of the Constitution which put too much power in the hands of one man, which was a limiting factor in the development of democratic processes." Budisa said the support given to him would be in the interest of the Croatian pe
OSIJEK, Jan 12 (Hina) - Croatian presidential candidate Drazen
Budisa told a pre-electoral rally in Osijek on Wednesday the
impending elections should create conditions for making Croatia a
prosperous, socially just and democratic country, integrated with
Europe and in which human rights are protected.
If elected president, I will protect national independence and the
constitutional and law order, Budisa, the candidate of the
democratic and social liberal SDP/HSLS coalition which won recent
parliamentary elections, said presenting his programme in the
eastern Croatian town.
He committed that in cooperation with parliament and the
government, he would "change the parts of the Constitution which
put too much power in the hands of one man, which was a limiting
factor in the development of democratic processes."
Budisa said the support given to him would be in the interest of the
Croatian people and state, and announced he would leave his party if
elected head of state. The office of the President of the Republic
"is incompatible with party activity, and the president of state
must be the president of all citizens."
"To fortify the president's integrative role, I commit to include
in the President's Council (...) representatives of all
parliamentary parties, so that advising the president will be the
most responsible people of various political ideas, and to prevent
state institutions from once again becoming party services,"
Budisa said.
One of his main aims will be to put secret services under
parliament's control, and "take Croatia out of the economic crisis.
Budisa announced cutting public expenditure by 17 percent and the
costs of the President's Office by two thirds.
The new government will not treat the formerly ruling Croatian
Democratic Union (HDZ) as "arrogantly" as the HDZ did the former
Opposition, Budisa said.
He pointed out "any notion of any form of revanchism is foreign" to
the SDP/HSLS coalition. "New criteria of ability and honesty, and
not political correctness, will be introduced" in Croatian
politics, he said.
"We want to take Croatia out of international isolation in which it
is in a short time," Budisa said.
(hina) ha