Boško Šiljegović has been military ombudsman for 15 years, turned 65 in 2021 but still hasn't retired

(Patria) - Boško Šiljegović has been serving as the parliamentary military ombudsman since September 2009. Although the legal limit is two terms, Šiljegović has held the same position for a full 15 years.

He turned 65 back in 2021 and, by force of law, should have been retired. He was born in July 1956.

The Law on the Parliamentary Military Ombudsman specifies the election of the military ombudsman, who is elected by the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina upon the proposal of the Joint Committee on Defence and Security, with candidates proposed both by members of the Committee and by the caucuses or clubs of peoples from both houses of the BiH PA.

Šiljegović is a former SDS cadre, and speaking about the election of the military ombudsman, he said that the next election will depend on a political agreement, i.e., that the position should go to Serbs or Croats, justifying this by saying that Bosniaks hold the Minister of Defence, the Chairman of the Joint Committee on Defence and Security, and the Inspector General.

However, if such logic is applied in this case, why is the balance of power not questioned in some other positions? For example, the Minister of Finance and Treasury of BiH is Srđan Amidžić, who is also the Chairman of the Management Board of the Indirect Taxation Authority of BiH, the Secretary of the Ministry is also from the Serbian people, as is the Director of the Central Harmonisation Unit, and the Director of the Indirect Taxation Authority is Zoran Tegeltija from SNSD.

Such examples can be found in all institutions at the state level, and the Constitution of BiH clearly stipulates that officials appointed to positions in BiH institutions must reflect the constituent peoples of BiH.

Accordingly, Bosniaks are entitled to 50 percent of official positions in BiH institutions, but actual data shows that this is not even one third.

Precisely the position of military ombudsman should be held by a cadre from the Bosniak people.

However, the first step is for Šiljegović to retire in accordance with the law.

The position of parliamentary military ombudsman was established with the aim of strengthening the rule of law, protecting the human rights and freedoms of military personnel and cadets in the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Ministry of Defence of Bosnia and Herzegovina. His task is to supervise the work and other issues in the area of protecting the human rights and freedoms of military personnel and cadets in the BiH Armed Forces and the BiH Ministry of Defence.