On Saturday, 1 August 2026, beginning at 8:15 p.m., a public meeting of the Local Committee of Vrebac was held with residents of Vrebac, Zavode, and Pavlovac. In addition to the President and one member of the Local Committee, approximately 15 residents attended the meeting.
The meeting had been announced as having “no agenda”, only for the President of the Local Committee, Miloš Popović, to propose an agenda at the very beginning of the meeting: (1) The current situation in the Local Committee, and (2) St. Elijah — laying a wreath at the memorial.
Those present agreed to the proposed topics without additions, but it was obvious that they did not understand what was meant by “the situation.” They therefore waited for the President’s opening remarks.
From that point onward, the meeting took a completely unexpected turn.
Popović opened with the question: “How was the Serbian National Reading Room and Library in Vrebac able to have the electricity connection for the Community Hall registered in its own name?”
Other questions followed: how could the same thing have happened with the water connection? Then came the key question: Whose property is the Community Hall, and why does the Association hold the keys to the Hall?
The President claimed that the Community Hall was owned by the City of Gospić (?), that he knew everything about the Hall, and raised questions concerning its use, funds invested in its renovation, the legal dispute with the City of Gospić, and so on.
In other words, it became apparent that the proposed agenda was merely a pretext for an attack — provoked by nothing — against the Association and the Community Hall, and that the meeting had deliberately been announced without an agenda in order to achieve an element of surprise.
These issues dominated at least half of the meeting. The initial surprise of some of those present at the subject of “the situation in the Local Committee” was followed by a discussion involving another group of residents who were evidently prepared to argue against the Serbian National Reading Room and Library and its ownership.
As part of the arguments against the Association, the question was even raised as to who had elected the Association’s Management Board and why the residents had not been informed and consulted about it, while some individuals believed that they themselves should have been registered as members of the Association (?) and so on and so forth……….
Even explanations failed to resolve the issue.
Several members of the Association, as well as the President of its Management Board, addressed the gathering and raised the fundamental question: “How can the Association possibly be the subject of a discussion about ‘the situation in the Local Committee’?”
Nevertheless, they attempted to provide constructive explanations to the questions that had been raised — for example, that it is logical for the owner to arrange the electricity and water connections; that funds collected for the renovation of the Community Hall should be accounted for transparently; that the use of the Hall is open to anyone who wishes to use it under the conditions established by the Association, bearing in mind that the Association pays the Hall’s expenses and maintains it; that all documentation concerning the Association and its dispute with the City of Gospić has been publicly posted on the Association’s website and is available to everyone; that the Association’s governing bodies are elected by its members; and so on and so forth……….
None of this prevented the President of the Local Committee from stating that he did not believe the published documents (?) and that he was not interested in the Association’s website because he knew everything about the matter himself.
In order to test his knowledge of the subject, he was even offered the idea of organizing a “quiz.”
The questions and discussion were truly “out of time and place.”
The discussion, in which no one was able to convince anyone else of the validity of their arguments, was interrupted by the question of why the Association was being attacked in the first place — an Association that is trying to restore social life not only in this immediate area and beyond, but also to involve the large Vrebac diaspora interested in the situation in this region, where fewer than 500 people — and not even 300 — live as far as Ploča.
This is all the more unnecessary given that the Association is open to cooperation and dialogue and invites everyone who accepts its Statutes to participate in its work.
The discussion finally moved on to the actual situation in the Local Committee.
Questions were raised concerning the repair of the cistern near the school, the renovation of the schools in Vrebac and Pavlovac, the grading and resurfacing of roads and the maintenance of roadside vegetation, as well as the current safety issue caused by the repair of road shoulders and loose sand scattered across the roadway from Barlete to Bilaj.
The issue of installing fire hydrants throughout Pavlovac was also raised, together with a request that the Local Committee initiate action with the competent authorities.
Other issues included the reconstruction of the dam below Popović Bridge, Gospinovac, and others.
Regarding issues related to the water supply and the Jadova River, the President of the Local Committee stated that he had no intention of going to Otočac, where the headquarters of Croatian Waters is located, to address these matters, referring to a conversation he had had with an engineer from the relevant service.
In response to this position, a proposal was made that the Local Committee prepare a letter containing a list of questions and requests and authorize anyone willing to personally contact Croatian Waters in Otočac to do so. The proposal, however, received no response.
The President’s position regarding the “fire hydrants in Pavlovac” was also met with surprise. He stated that this should have been resolved when the water supply system was constructed and that he would not deal with individual requests. He added that anyone wishing to resolve a particular problem could write a letter themselves — because the Local Committee did not have the capacity to do so — and that he would sign and stamp it.
The President’s information that a mobile medical clinic was being organized for the autumn, about which the public would be informed in due time, was positively received.
The President of the Local Committee was then asked, constructively, about the Rules of Procedure of the Local Committee, its Work Plan, the convening of meetings, and the preparation and publication of minutes.
He replied that he had no intention of dealing with these matters and that he would not prepare a Work Plan.
During the discussion, it was also pointed out that the City has a service that provides professional and administrative assistance to Local Committees and could facilitate the work of the Local Committee.
The organization of the Commemoration was also discussed. Questions were raised as to whether it had been agreed who would deliver the commemorative address, why the Commemoration was being officially announced at this meeting, on the night before it was to take place, and why notices had not been posted in the villages earlier.
Some questions remained unanswered.
The President of the Local Committee announced that the Commemoration would take place the following day, 2 August, at 10:00 a.m. He stated that the City of Gospić had provided the wreath for the memorial, that there was nothing to organize regarding the Commemoration, and that anyone who wished could speak at it.
The Association offered the use of its website to inform residents about the work of the Local Committee, minutes of its meetings, information, and notices. The President of the Local Committee explicitly rejected the offer.
The meeting eventually descended into personal attacks and discrediting remarks directed at two residents of Vrebac, and ended at approximately 9:30 p.m. in an unpleasant atmosphere.
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In Conclusion
It was an unorganized, tendentious, and completely unnecessary meeting which, instead of opening positive perspectives, created unnecessary divisions within this small community, already disadvantaged both demographically and socially.
All in all, the meeting contributed only to divisions among the residents. And if that was its purpose — it succeeded!
The question is: Who benefits from this? And should the Local Committee, or someone within the Local Committee, bear responsibility for it?
It also remains unclear how the new Local Committee will function at all, particularly given the divisions within the Committee itself. As far as could be understood, this meeting had not been prepared and agreed upon at a session of the Local Committee.
Furthermore, judging by the positions expressed by the President of the Local Committee, serious doubts arise, and it is impossible to conclude how and in what manner the Local Committee intends to act in the interests of the local community.
Because the Local Committee should serve the citizens and the area for which it is responsible, as well as those who elected it — not stand above them.
Let us also wait for the official minutes of the Local Committee.
If we are given the opportunity, we will publish them!