Radimir Čačić, the president of the People’s Party – Reformists, stated on Tuesday that the pension problem exists and needs to be addressed, but “not ‘in a rush’ and not in a way that essentially abolishes a good model,” and he emphasized that it is not good that the pension reform has been made public without the ‘whole story’ being seriously considered.
>>>Plenković: The Purpose of Pension Reform is the Sustainability of the System and the Adequacy of Pensions
– There are things that are indisputable, we must align the whole story to 67 years, we need to accelerate that process and discourage early retirement, and provide the possibility of receiving pensions to those who currently have other types of income. These are all good measures, this is an acute problem, but the solution is fundamentally not good if in this or that form, without entering into constitutionality and legality, we abolish the 93 billion kuna collected in pension funds under the guise of ensuring equality of pensions for the next 10 to 15 years, said Čačić, who left early from a meeting in the Government where Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and Minister of Labor Marko Pavić presented the reform to coalition partners.
We need to seek solutions, they exist in reducing fees for managers, not expanding privileged pensions, and increasing employment, Čačić believes.
– The problem is here, it needs to be addressed, not ‘in a rush’ and not in a way that abolishes a fundamentally good model, he said.
>>>Pavić: Pensioners Already Lack 17 Billion Kuna Annually, That’s Eight Pelješac Bridges
– I would say that there will be an attempt to rethink, he replied to the question of whether he is optimistic or pessimistic after the meeting in the Government. He assessed that it is not good that it has been made public without the ‘whole story’ being seriously considered.
Čačić: There is No Opposition, So the Government Must Think Five Times
– This is too big of a story, it literally concerns 100 billion kuna and the fate of more than a million people. And when we talk about a million people in one country, and at this moment we have a ratio of pensioners to employed of 1:1.2, then this needs to be thought about seriously and all options should be seriously considered, and models and scenarios should be sought, Čačić emphasized.
When asked if the HDZ is ready for compromise, he replied that he cannot say it was a compromise, but rather a discussion.
– This is too serious and complex a topic, it cannot be resolved in a 15-minute or one-hour meeting. I see that colleagues are willing to talk, that is the good side of this moment, he added.
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He stated that there are situations when the Government and the ruling majority have greater responsibility than usual, especially when there is no opposition.
– Then the responsibility is greater. The Government must be aware of the fact that it must think two, three, or five times if there is no one to force it to think. Unfortunately, at this moment there is no opposition, Čačić concluded.
