Bandić: The "Trojka" destroyed public utility companies in Sarajevo

(Patria) - Member of the Party for BiH in the Sarajevo Canton Assembly, Muamer Bandić, sharply criticized the current "Trojka" government (NiP, SDP, and Our Party), assessing that the inability and clientelism of these parties have led to the complete collapse of cantonal public utility companies.

"Instead of holding the incompetent managements they appointed themselves accountable, the "Trojka" government covers the financial losses of public companies from the budget, thereby rewarding idleness and poor performance. In return, citizens receive services that are below any minimum, and far from pre-election promises – which, as it turns out, were false," Bandić stated.

As the most drastic example, he cited KJKP "Vodovod i kanalizacija" (Water and Sewerage), which, despite an EBRD loan of 25 million euros, has outsourced most of its work to subcontractors. "The goal of the loan was to reduce water losses by 70 percent, and today, after more than 20 million euros have been spent, losses have increased to 73 percent," warned the SBiH representative.

Bandić also recalled the case of director Azra Muzur, in which the KS Government, as he says, consciously ignores the final verdicts of the Cantonal and Supreme Courts. "This is the clearest proof that the "Trojka" is following the practice of its political partner Milorad Dodik, openly violating the law and humiliating the legal order of the state," he added.

According to him, problems are also affecting Toplane (Heating Plants) and KJKP "Rad" (Public Utility Company "Rad"). "In Toplane, the management has adjusted the systematization to the needs of the party network, while in Rad, former director Vera Arnautović misused hundreds of thousands of marks intended for the procurement of machinery. At the same time, a significant number of vehicles are unusable, and the management is engaged in persecuting political opponents," said Bandić.

He particularly emphasized that the biggest victims of such a system are workers and disabled workers. "While new staff are being brought in along party lines, often to management positions, disabled workers do not have adequate jobs secured, and honest workers are being persecuted and fired," he said.

Concluding his address, Bandić stated:

"What we have in Sarajevo today are not the European standards that the "Trojka" promised, but a system of clientelism and idleness, identical to Dodik's model of controlling public institutions and companies. The citizens of Sarajevo deserve better, and I believe they will not endure this agony much longer."