I will be the new Prime Minister

Dževad Bećirević, the bearer of the SDP BiH list for the Assembly of Sarajevo Canton, gave an interview to the daily Oslobođenje in which he comments on the work of the Sarajevo Canton Government and announces changes from October 12. We are republishing the interview from the portal www.oslobodjenje.ba.

Q: You are the bearer of the SDP list for the Assembly of Sarajevo Canton. There is already talk in the city that you are the new Prime Minister, so I am wondering whether we will again get an executive government in Sarajevo composed of SDP and SDA cadres, which did not survive the current term, or do you think the pie will be divided among more parties, which the last, still current, composition of the Government did not prove to be a good example?

- SDP BiH has the most representative list of candidates for the Assembly of Sarajevo Canton. Our list is a blend of youth and experience. SDP's goal is to win the elections and secure a stable parliamentary majority in the Assembly of Sarajevo Canton, after which we will form a government that I should lead. I do not consider the executive government in Sarajevo Canton as a pie to be divided among parties. The situation in Sarajevo is too serious, and no one should view the future distribution of executive power as post-election spoils. In SDP, we have prepared solutions so that the next four years will be years of progress for Sarajevo Canton, and thus for BiH. It is still too early to talk about possible coalitions; we are a left-wing party, I prefer a centre-left government. In any case, whoever we enter into partnership with, it will be based, first and foremost, on a programme for the recovery of Sarajevo Canton, and then its development. I hope that after the elections, the executive government in Sarajevo Canton will not be composed as it was in the past four-year period.

Q: Since you have been at the helm of the richest municipality for a third term, you surely have a vision of what needs to be improved in the Canton. If you gain the trust of the citizens, where will you start?

- I have been at the head of the Centar Municipality for ten years, and during that time we have implemented hundreds of projects that have contributed to our residents having a more pleasant and higher quality living environment. I want to transfer the experience, strength, and will I have to Sarajevo Canton as well. After October 12, changes will begin. We will work in a planned and realistic manner, but also decisively, with utmost responsibility and transparency. The time has come for citizens to stop fearing whether they will be left without water, gas, heating, and transport, whether classes will be suspended because teachers are rightly dissatisfied. I know that all problems in Sarajevo Canton are solvable. Among the first things after the elections and our victory are public and utility companies, healthcare, the issue of education, the necessity of new and quality investments, the status of science, cultural policy, and increasing the faith of young people in how best to live and act in their homeland of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Q: How long will we have to listen to stories about foreign investors turning their backs on us due to an unfavourable investment climate and overly long administrative procedures?

- It is true that many investors bypass Sarajevo Canton, and BiH in general. During the ten-year period I have been at the head of the Centar Municipality, we have done what we could to attract both domestic and foreign investors. We have largely succeeded, because dozens of representative buildings, shopping centres have been built, branded hotels are being constructed where our fellow citizens are employed. Sarajevo Canton must do even more. Here, the mentality in approach must begin to change, not towards problems, but towards opportunities. We swim like a fish in an aquarium, while around us is a sea of opportunities. When you don't know what to do, you start talking about simplifying procedures or openness to investors, domestic or foreign. I am not saying that is not necessary, on the contrary. First and foremost, this is a big city with big problems, and we need big projects. In many highly developed countries, the state is, in total, the largest investor, and it should be the same here. When we secure water and a water supply network for the normal supply of Sarajevo, when we ensure alternative sources of heating for apartments so we don't fear every autumn whether we will have gas in winter or not, when we provide adequate and decent city transport, only then will we be serious partners for foreign and domestic investors. In the Canton, we first need to start working and investing ourselves, so that others gain confidence to invest. This time, it will not remain just words on paper. We know how to make Sarajevo more interesting and attractive for investors.

Q: After the Centar Municipality building, which you lead, was set on fire during the February protests, you said you expected all levels of government to seriously address citizens' problems and that those responsible would be brought to justice. Can we conclude that none of that has been done?

- Unfortunately, what happened happened. The Centar Municipality building suffered terrible damage measured in millions. Nevertheless, thanks to a stable budget, we had the money to restore one of Sarajevo's symbols. All the most important documents were saved, and citizens never felt any disruption in exercising their rights. I was stunned when I saw what the protests turned into and what the building, which remained defended even during the war, looked like. Citizens had and still have many reasons for dissatisfaction, but that dissatisfaction should not have been expressed in that way. And what do we have now, seven months later? Nothing. Those who set fire to and destroyed citizens' property went unpunished, and not a single serious problem has been resolved.

Q: Despite the damage it suffered, the Centar Municipality was the only one that managed to set aside half a million marks for the population of areas affected by floods and landslides. From the state budget, only 0.6 percent of the budget was allocated for these purposes. Your comment?

- The Centar Municipal Council unanimously adopted my proposal to allocate 500,000 marks from the budget to help municipalities and cities that suffered the most during the May floods. Help was given to municipalities in both the Federation and the Republika Srpska. We helped according to our capabilities and could not sit idly by, setting money aside and pretending nothing was happening. It was humane to help, and that is what we did. Since I have been mayor, the practice of the Centar Municipality has been to help less developed municipalities. So far, we have allocated more than ten million marks for these purposes. We need a strong Centar Municipality, but progress in other local communities is also necessary for BiH to be as strong as possible. That is ultimately everyone's goal. The fact that 0.6 percent of the state budget was allocated, while we provided half a million marks, only shows that we in the Centar Municipality are on the right track and that with the right approach, even the most responsible local communities can play a significant role when it comes to financial assistance to less developed municipalities and cities. We will also allocate certain funds next year to help people who lost their roofs in unprecedented floods. We will not look at what others are doing or how much they are helping.

Q: You are one of the leading figures in the Association of Municipalities and Cities of the FBiH, which has repeatedly pointed out the unsatisfactory position of local self-government units due to the constant transfer of competencies to the local level without adequate financial resources for their implementation. If you move to a higher level of government, will you continue to advocate for help to municipalities with these issues?

- Often our citizens had certain problems for which the Municipality was not responsible. We paved roads, built water supply and sewage networks, provided funds for public city transport. We invested in education, healthcare, equipped schools, police, and firefighters. Citizens often see the Municipality as the first address for solving their problems. We have always been open to them, and I will continue this, the only correct policy, in the future. In the end, citizens are not interested in whose jurisdiction something is; they want conditions worthy of people living in the 21st century in the capital of a European country. I want that too. However, frequent transfers of competencies from higher levels of government to local self-government units, without financial resources, cause problems for municipalities and cities that find it increasingly difficult to find money in their budgets even for the most basic needs. With my arrival in Sarajevo Canton, I am convinced that things will be set in motion for the better. The experience I have gained working in a local self-government unit can be a plus when addressing issues of transferring competencies and the money needed to carry out that work, said Bećirević, as reported by Patria.