"Based on his expert and political competencies, we believe he is certainly the best candidate who can do a lot in that position both for Istria and for Croatia," Mimica told Nova TV.
Asked if it was possible for Jakovcic to sit in the Milanovic Cabinet, he said they were coming closer to their original intention to have all coalition party leaders sit in the government, which he said was the right place for talks, agreement and dialogue not on how to change the coalition's Plan 21 platform but on how to improve it.
Jakovcic told reporters the IDS Presidency did not discuss a possible candidate for the new tourism minister and that it accepted Milanovic's invitation that it nominate the new minister.
"At this moment it's extremely flippant to talk about who the new tourism minister will be," he told Croatian Television when asked to comment on the SDP's proposal that he take the office.
Jakovcic said that, since the IDS was given the chance to nominate the minister, he wanted to talk with the key people in tourism's private sector "because we really need either strong experts or strong politicians."
He said the decision should be made by consensus.
Ostojic resigned on Saturday, saying he had done so under pressure caused by unfounded accusations and an extensive campaign against him that prevented him from doing his job in the professional manner set by him and his team at the Tourism Ministry.
He resigned after the media reported that the State Prosecutor's Office was investigating the sale of an attractive piece of land near the coastal resort of Rovinj, whose value rose from HRK 1 million to 25 million after urbanisation, and in whose purchase, urbanisation and sale Ostojic was involved.
(EUR 1 = HRK 7.5)