Asked if it was true that he asked to be retired, Seks said: "It is true. The Pension Insurance Agency determined the amount of my pension allowance, but I immediately froze my pension."

"I did this to avoid possible legal changes which could jeopardise my acquired rights as a parliamentary deputy... although I don't believe they would apply to me, as I have served too many terms," Seks said. He added that it was possible that new legislation could jeopardise his pension since in the past few years laws had been changed resulting in a ten percent cut in MPs' pensions.

He told reporters that his actions were in accordance with the law.

Boro Grubisic of the Croatian Democratic Party of Slavonia and Baranja (HDSSB), too, asked to be retired and then froze his pension.

Commenting on Seks's decision, Labour Party president Dragutin Lesar said this was proof that "something that is formally legal is neither fair nor moral."

"I could understand if they took their privileged pensions and truly retired. I truly don't know what they are doing in parliament now," Lesar said, adding that if any member of his party decided to do what Seks had done, he would deny them party membership.

The Croatian parliament today published on its web site a list of 46 members of the last parliament who had applied to be issued a certificate on the duration of their term based on which they can request activation of their pension as MPs, Parliament Speaker Boris Sprem said in an interview on Croatian Radio.

The 46 MPs include seven who were also elected to the new, seventh parliament - Vladimir Seks, Stjepan Milinkovic, Ivanka Roksandic and Ana Lovrin of the HDZ; Boro Grubisic of the HDSSB party; and minority MPs Denes Soja and Furio Radin.