Makarska marked its City Day on Friday with a solemn session of the City Council, during which President of the Republic Zoran Milanović delivered the central address. He warned that waste disposal and management are currently the most serious challenge for Croatia.
In his speech, Milanović assessed that Croatia "lives off tourism too much". He explained that, apart from Dubrovnik, Split, Trogir, Zadar and Šibenik, people from Europe and the world come to Croatia mainly for things like Biokovo, for the sun and the sea. He stated that this is a competitive advantage that many others do not have and that it must be specially protected.
He also referred to the incident involving illegal waste disposal in Gospić. He said that this would create an additional amount of resistance, caution and intolerance towards such matters among the Croatian people, making it much harder for such an event to ever happen again in Croatia. "That is why it is important that we approach waste disposal and management as something that is currently the most serious challenge for Croatia. This has been going on for a very long time, in my opinion perhaps too long," Milanović said.
The President warned that public procurement is complicated and takes one, two, three, four years. He emphasised that deadlines are important because it makes a difference whether remediation happens now, in a year or in five years. He added that waste disposal must be approached with special responsibility and there must be constant insistence on preserving space and natural wealth. "We must not saw off the branch we are sitting on," he said.
Milanović also reflected on the historical role of Makarska, reminding the audience that it was in its area that the Croatian language began to be used in official institutions among the first in Dalmatia.
Mayor of Makarska Zoran Paunović reminded attendees of the numerous projects launched and continued over the past year. The Peškere and urban park project has been completed, with an investment of around 7.5 million euros. A second kindergarten has also been completed and opened, ensuring that every child in Makarska has a place in a kindergarten, and work has begun on the Makarska branch of the Juraj Bonačić Centre for Education and Upbringing.
Paunović finally surprised those present at the solemn session - after his speech, he played the trumpet with piano accompaniment by Petra Šošić.
