CIK and election blockade imminent, Rančić doesn't even know which Budget is in effect

(Patria) - It has begun! Vjekoslav Bevanda, HDZ's Minister of Finance in the Council of Ministers of BiH, who, contrary to the Decision on Temporary Financing, which was supposed to provide funds for the CEC in the current quarter for the implementation of the election process, has prevented the allocation of funds for the General Elections 2022. The goal is clear: there must be no elections if the HDZ's ultimatums are not accepted that their candidate must always be in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, said Mirsad Hadžikadić, president of the Platform for Progress and member of the State Coalition, in a reaction.

"The goal is to create a complete blockade of the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, to prevent the election process and the implementation of the people's will, and to deepen the agony and the 'status quo'," Hadžikadić emphasized.

And, the Central Election Commission has not yet received the act from the Ministry of Finance of BiH, by which their request for the payment of a quarter of the funds needed for the organization of elections is approved or rejected, and which they need to initiate public procurement procedures for the upcoming General Elections, confirmed the president of the CEC, Željko Bakalar, for Patria.

Silence in the Ministry of Finance of BiH. Patria did not receive an answer to the official inquiry as to why the funds provided for by temporary financing, which relate to special purposes, specifically preparatory actions for the elections, were not paid.

Unofficially, the Budget Sector sent an opinion to the CEC, but no one wants to talk about its content, and the Central Election Commission has not yet received it.

Hazim Rančić, Deputy Minister, tried to clarify the situation today, but it seems that he himself does not fully understand the issue!

"For the 2020 elections, the CEC's budget is around 8 million KM. Local communities also provide part of the funds, so the state provides less money. When it comes to general elections, more money is allocated from the state budget for them. So, if we follow that 2020 year, there will not be enough funds. The second thing is if we operate according to temporary financing, it refers to last year, which was not an election year, so no funds were foreseen for elections at all," explains Rančić.

While fully understanding that General Elections are more expensive than Local Elections, Rančić should know that temporary financing follows the last Budget, which is the one from 2020, and the Law is clear on this.