The Pelješac Bridge Consumes the Annual Budget for All Science and Education Projects

How many people will the construction of the Pelješac Bridge truly make happy compared to the number of those who would benefit from redirecting that money to improve education and employability in the face of the fierce competition brought by our imminent entry into the EU?

Written by: Željko Perić

Until recently, I believed and hoped that the plans for the construction of the Pelješac Bridge were merely election balloons and that the planned 300 million euros would be saved and invested in projects much more important for the future of Croatia. Unfortunately, the tender was quickly completed, and there is a clear rush among the interested parties to sign the contract before the elections, thus cementing the decision to build. Does Croatia even need a bridge over Pelješac? Is Croatia so wealthy that it connects an already connected peninsula with an expensive bridge? Can someone objective, independent, and wise scream and say that there are many smarter ways to invest a lot of money, 300 million euros, for the benefit of current and future generations?

When we talk about countries that have implemented successful reforms, Ireland is often cited as an example. However, it is worth remembering that Ireland managed to transform from a poor to a rich and prosperous country not by squandering money but by building its future primarily on one key resource – people, prioritizing huge investments in the reform of education and the training of its citizens. The construction of infrastructure facilities in Ireland was left for last. Today, the Irish are a happy and satisfied people living in a country with almost full employment.

Minister Primorac deserves praise for the enormous effort and results of his department’s work, but they are still far from what Croatia needs. In 2006, the Croatian government invested approximately 9.5 billion kuna in science and education, but if we strip things down a bit, the actual investments, excluding salaries of employees, are at a level of approximately 2.5 billion kuna (spread across a large number of users). Therefore, we can conclude that the entire year of investment by the central government in science and education will end up in the concrete and steel of the Pelješac Bridge! How many people will the construction of the Pelješac Bridge truly make happy compared to the number of those who would benefit from redirecting that money to improve their education and employability in the face of the fierce competition brought by our imminent entry into the EU?

We proudly boast that we are one of the water-richest countries in Europe, yet every year our farmers in the north, east, and south of Croatia, like poor African tribes, call for rain and pray to God to spare them from a dry summer. The construction of an irrigation system is not one of the more important priorities of this country either. How much could be saved on food imports if we directed those 300 million euros towards the intensive construction of a serious irrigation system!? But it seems that it is much more elegant, and obviously more profitable, to spend billions of kuna on food imports every year. The priority of this country is not even the protection of natural resources, property, and the lives of citizens. Hundreds of hectares of forests, olive groves, and vineyards disappear every year in fires on our coast. Twelve young lives were taken by the flames on Kornat because the commander had to make a difficult decision – to send the only available Canadair to Kornat or to Vodice! Unfortunately, he sent it to Vodice.

The circle of suspects for responsibility for the Kornat tragedy is closing within the firefighting system. Are they the only ones responsible? If the commander had one more Canadair at his disposal, the tragedy would not have occurred. But he did not have it! Why? After that terrible tragedy, the President of the Parliament, Vladimir Šeks, stated that ‘plans for the purchase of another Canadair and the rental of two more are just being finalized’! Funny and tragic at the same time! Just a fraction of the planned Pelješac euros could have saved hundreds of hectares of olive groves, vineyards, centuries-old forests, and, of course, human lives. Unfortunately, this country has evidently more important priorities and lacks the funds to procure the optimal number of Canadairs, helicopters, boats, to build water supply systems, hydrants… that would protect what should be our most important resources – human lives and natural wealth. The value of the saved property (not to mention human lives) would certainly bring a quick ‘return on investment’ in additional funds for fire protection, while the Pelješac Bridge will forever remain an unprofitable investment. However, if we look at the construction of the Pelješac Bridge not only from an economic and emotional perspective but also from a political one, it is difficult to find reasonable justification and convincing arguments in favor of the construction.

A recent statement by Zoran Milanović regarding the questionable voting rights of the diaspora seemed a bit naive and counterproductive for the SDP, and thus unnecessary during election time. It seemed that with that statement, Milanović gave the ruling HDZ one of the stronger trump cards for the electoral campaign. However, Milanović explained his position by stating that our government must fight for the rights of Croats in BiH in Sarajevo, not in Zagreb. The example of the construction of the Pelješac Bridge actually shows that Milanović was right. The government, instead of continuing the highway along the most natural route, through Neum, and thus bringing it closer to Croats in Herzegovina, decided to circumvent the territory of BiH, which is almost entirely inhabited by Croats, in a large arc. The construction of the bridge will take, according to initial estimates, at least four years and cost at least 300 million euros.

A true concern for the interests of Croats in BiH and their better connection with Croatia would be shown if the government spent, if necessary, two years negotiating with the BiH government to agree on a solution for the highway to pass through a small part of BiH territory around Neum. Technical solutions exist; it is only necessary to fight for a diplomatic one as well. Even if we spent two years negotiating with the BiH government, there would still be enough time to build and open that small section before the time needed for the construction of the bridge expires, but with significantly lower investments. With that solution, not only would Croats in BiH be much happier and more satisfied, but Croats in Croatia would also be much happier and more satisfied. The former because their homeland has given them something concrete, and the latter because they spared Pelješac from devastation and saved a huge amount of money that could be redirected to much more important and priority content. Is it not hypocritical to bypass Croats in BiH in a large arc, while leaving them the inalienable right to vote in Croatia as a consolation?

If we take into account the time perspective, only then do we see how shortsighted and illogical that move is. Namely, in four to five years, when the bridge is built, Croatia will have already entered the EU, and BiH will most likely be on the path to accession. One day we will find ourselves together again in the European Union, which breaks down borders among member states, so the logic of things will pull the highway into its natural corridor, through the area of Neum. And the Pelješac Bridge will remain as a monument to stupidity, arrogant greed, extravagance, lack of sincere responsibility, and vision of those who decide to realize such a project despite everything. Ireland had a clear development vision, and its government defined investment priorities accordingly, so it is no coincidence that its transport infrastructure was at the bottom of the list. There is no need to copy anyone, and we certainly have reasons to push transport infrastructure up the list of our priorities, but that does not give any government the right to irresponsibly squander hundreds of millions of euros. The current state of the Croatian economy and total indebtedness is the result of the work of previous governments. The fact that we have not one, but two Maslenica bridges and the fact that we connect the peninsula to the mainland clearly speaks of chaos and luxury, and certainly not of the existence of a vision and smart investment according to predefined criteria and priorities.

If someone already has reasons for insufficient use of domestic intelligence in designing a development strategy, they could at least call in Irish strategists and experts for help. And indeed, I recently read that the ruling party engaged specialists from Ireland. But not those experts who participated in creating the Irish economic miracle and implementing reforms, but so-called spin doctors or specialists in twisting facts and effectively selling smoke to the public. They were not engaged to help devise a development strategy but to inflate the value of certain successful moves to the sky during this election period, while portraying years of wandering and chaos as a coherent and wise strategy.

The team of ‘specialists’ will do their utmost to convince the public that by opening a fire station in Valpovo and purchasing one Canadair, we will solve firefighting problems, that the IPOs of INA and T-HT are excellent moves that are both a gift to citizens and a solution to problems for retirees, and that the construction of the Pelješac Bridge is a brilliant and absolutely necessary project for this country, for which the investment of 300 million euros is a trifle that Croatia can easily afford. They are engaged to trivialize the real problems of this country with various creative tools and to, among other things, successfully divert public attention from the primary (corruption) cancer to its peripheral metastases with a rich arsenal of smoke bombs. And they will do this unscrupulously and so intensely, fiercely followed by the leading voices of our entertainment industry, that the painful cries of families of those who perished on Kornat will no longer be heard by anyone.