Don’t miss the latest developments in business and finance.

Croatia snap election: Chances of strong leadership bleak

Image
IANS Zagreb
Last Updated : Sep 10 2016 | 2:22 AM IST

At a time when Croatia facing chronic economic woes, rising tension with neighbouring Serbia and migration crisis, a snap parliamentary election on Sunday is unlikely to deliver a strong leadership for a country, a media report said.

Just 10 months after Croatia's last election left parliament split between the right-wing HDZ party and a leftist alliance led by the Social Democrats, polls predict that this ballot will produce a similar result, Irish Times reported on Friday.

The coalition of HDZ and the new Most ("Bridge") party, which took over power after the elections, collapsed six months later amid squabbling and conflict-of-interest claims against then HDZ leader Tomislav Karamarko.

The event brought down the Tihomir Oreskovic government, paralysing crucial reforms and leaving the country adrift when it badly needed political and economic clarity.

Both the main parties are pledging to reduce state spending and to make the tax system more effective. The public debt is now at 87 per cent.

The HDZ is accused of leading a slide to the populist right in Croatian politics, just as a similar process is taking place in Serbia and other states in the region and beyond, the report noted.

More From This Section

--IANS

sku/

Also Read

First Published: Sep 10 2016 | 2:06 AM IST

Next Story