The mayor of Karlovac, Damir Mandić, has stated that he supports the opposition's proposal for a referendum on his dismissal. In a post on Facebook, he addressed the press conference held by the opposition following the removal of forty trees from Ban Jelačić Square, as reported by KAportal.
"Dismissal? I support it! After nine years in office, I would also like to take stock of what has been achieved in the meantime. Who acted responsibly, with vision, in the interest of citizens and respecting expertise, and who lacked ideas and knowledge," Mandić wrote in a post titled "We are marching with lies and manipulations as they only know how."
In response to accusations that he was responsible for the arrest of two activists who had attempted to stop the felling, the mayor stated that, according to the information available to him, the contractor had called the police. "Neither I nor anyone from the city administration were involved in the actions of the contractor or the police," he asserted.
He added that following the citizens' request, he had ordered a pause in the works to re-examine the procedural, urban planning, and technical details of the square's renovation, stating that this was "not for the benefit of the administration, but for the citizens."
The opposition, in turn, faced a series of questions. He asked why only 2,000 signatures had been submitted to the city administration when the public had been repeating the figure of 4,000, why council member Adamec had not explained his vote for the square renovation project at the city council meeting on 3 July 2025, for which, according to Mandić, the entire opposition had voted, and why the council member from the Možemo party had remained abstinent on the Steering Committee despite signing the petition.
The removal of the plane trees from the central square in Karlovac has sparked protests, the arrest of two women, and opposition claims that the mayor is considering initiating a dismissal procedure.
