SDP member on Kolarić's departure: 'Let him return the mandate and say if he is Plenković's new hand'

Branko Kolarić, a prominent figure within Croatia's Social Democratic Party (SDP), has announced his departure after 19 years of membership. Kolarić, who previously served as the director of the Andrija Štampar Public Health Institute and led the SDP's Zagreb branch, stated that he no longer aligns with the party's current direction and ideas.

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It is rumored that Branko will be Plenković's new hand in the ruling majority with the aim of rearranging and pushing DP out of the Government. What interests all of us - and citizens should know this too - is whether this is true: and that is a question that Branko Kolarić himself must answer.

His decision has drawn a response from SDP's political secretary, Saša Đujić. While expressing regret over Kolarić's exit, Đujić suggested that Kolarić should return the parliamentary mandate he received on the SDP's list. "Citizens voted for the SDP and the politics we jointly represented. If he made his decision based on principles as he claims, then I believe he will do so," Đujić commented, implying that Kolarić's stated reasons for leaving should be matched by returning the seat.

Đujić also addressed circulating rumors suggesting Kolarić might be aligning with Prime Minister Plenković's ruling majority. "It is rumored that Branko will be Plenković's new hand in the ruling majority with the aim of rearranging and pushing DP out of the Government. What interests all of us - and citizens should know this too - is whether this is true: and that is a question that Branko Kolarić himself must answer," Đujić stated. He added that it would soon become clear if this was the motive behind Kolarić's departure or related to a "Resolution against the theft of organs for transplantation in China."

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Citizens voted for the SDP and the politics we jointly represented. If he made his decision based on principles as he claims, then I believe he will do so.

Kolarić, in a letter explaining his decision, stated that he left the SDP because the party and he no longer believed in the same things, citing freedom of thought, solidarity, and mutual respect as core values he once shared with the party. He asserted that he has remained true to himself and his pursuit of "good ideas."

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No longer shares the same ideas.