What was Ivo Sanader thinking?

It will probably never be fully clarified what Sanader was thinking on Sunday, as it will never be clarified why he left the post of PM.

Just like he left the post of prime minister and president of the HDZ - without giving a proper explanation - his surprising press conference, where he criticized the work of the government and the current president of HDZ Jadranka Kosor, is likely to remain unexplained.

His strange behavior and accusatory statements are the reason why the HDZ party revoked his membership on Monday evening. It is hard to believe that a politician who made HDZ so popular after the nineties and who won the election twice, would commit such political suicide and strip himself of all privileges.

Distorted self-image

Is the reason for this his confidence, a giant ego or misinformed advisors who spent six months assuring him of something that was not true? The problem undoubtedly lies in the media who spent six years praising him as a true leader and savior, and who only occasionally criticized him for minor political moves. It is likely that a self-assured person who reads in newspapers about one’s brilliant competence would convince himself that all of it was true – even if it was not. In the moment when Sanader was generally praised by the media, he decided to resign, leave Croatia drowning in debts and in the midst of stalled Brussels negotiations. However, as the Sunday’s press conference vividly illustrated, this is not the reality he saw because he continued viewing himself as the ‘right man’ for the HDZ.

He failed to see that the situation has changed. He (finally) was no longer desirable in the party or the government. Media reports that he had a secret plan to use Luka Bebic to overpower the Parliament and claim its presidency, from today's perspective, seem to be true. They probably planned to activate Sanader’s parliamentary mandate, allow Bebic to retire and name Sanader his successor. After the cowardly way in which he left the government, this rewrd would have been more than generous. It would have been likely to succeed had Sanader not made a suicidal move on Sunday.

He renounced comfortable life

This is the reason that one can’t help but wonder what was going through his head when he decided to call for a press conference on Sunday morning. In spite of tarnished reputation, he could have continued living comfortable life and enjoying HDZ’s support. 

Perhaps he wanted to assume party’s leadership to stop all investigations and scandals that sprang like mushrooms after the rain since he left. Perhaps investigation by Tomislav Karamarko and Mladen Bajic came too close to Sanader, particularly issues surrounding the Hypo Bank. If it is true that the former Chairman of the HPB Board, Josip Pretog will be a witness, this may be a bad news for Sanader. It is rumored that he is also involved with controversy surrounding Fimi-Media company and the owner, Nevenka Jurak.

He lost his head

However, his conciliatory statement after a presidency of the HDZ expelled him from the party is even more puzzling. His statement sent to Hina says:

- I accept the decision of the Presidency if that it is for the benefit of the HDZ.

His latest statement is in stark contrast with the tumultuous news conference from the day before where he almost called for the rebellion. It appears that the former PM, not only lost his compass during the past six months, but also his head. He either lived in fantasy world, like some of the current politicians working in Croatia, or these are the last desperate attempts to avoid scandals he is indirectly associated with.