Political responsibility- Croatian minister resigns after reports of property deals

Croatia's Public Administration Minister Lovro Kuscevic resigned on Monday after media reports about questionable land and real estate deals. Kuscevic has denied any wrongdoing over the reports, which have said the value of his land and property on Brac surged amid deals including changes in urban planning while he was at the helm of one of the municipalities covering the island.

"I have a political responsibility, it is clear to me that this negative media perception is a burden for the government. But I'm proud of my work," he said. A junior partner in Croatia's conservative-led ruling coalition, the liberal HNS party, had demanded he step down.

The ruling coalition has a thin majority in parliament and any dispute between the conservative HDZ and the liberals could jeopardize that majority. "We assessed that he personally, the HDZ party and the government are suffering considerably (from all this)," Andrej Plenkovic, prime minister and HDZ leader, was quoted as saying by state news agency Hina.

 

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