Ćulum Appoints Veiz as Head of Criminal Investigation Department, Bosniaks Have Only Two Chief Inspectors, Who Will Replace Malkić and Šahinpašić?

(Patria) - Director of the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) Darko Ćulum has appointed Amer Veiz as the Head of the Criminal Investigation Department. He succeeds Suad Hasanović, who retired in January.

At the end of February, Edin Malkić, head of the Sarajevo Regional Office, also retired. Until a new head is appointed, the duties of the manager are being performed by Dragan Marković, head of the Investigation Department with the rank of independent inspector.

The head of the Tuzla Regional Office is Midhat Butković, while the heads of the Banja Luka and Mostar Regional Offices are a Serb and a Croat.

Chief Inspector Vahidin Šahinpašić has also left SIPA, taking up the position of Deputy Director of the Federal Police Administration, leaving vacant the position of Head of the Department for the Investigation of War Crimes and Criminal Offenses Punishable under International Humanitarian Law.

After Malkić's retirement and Šahinpašić's move to the FUP, only two chief inspectors remain at SIPA: Amer Veiz and Jasmin Gogić, who retires at the end of July.

There are five chief inspectors from the Serb ethnicity and one from the Croat ethnicity.

At the same time, the situation is slightly better regarding independent inspectors: Bosniaks (36), Serbs (12), Croats (6), but Ćulum still does not want to announce competitions for promotions to enable Bosniaks and Croats to advance to the rank of chief inspector.

Incidentally, this year 53 police officers are retiring: 35 Bosniaks, 13 Serbs, and five Croats. Some have already retired in the first two months, and appeals have been filed against some decisions to the Police Officers' Appeals Committee.

Although the Council of Ministers of BiH has appointed a new composition of the Committee, it has not yet been constituted due to administrative procedures.