Dodik's Control Over the ITA: Money More Important Than Original Dayton, Power of SNSD and HDZ Clearer Than Ever, Troika Lost

Written by: Amina Čorbo-Zećo

Milorad Dodik knows very well what he is doing. In a fit of rage and talk about respecting the BiH Constitution, the original Dayton one, he has not once mentioned the Indirect Taxation Authority, an institution that is also not a Dayton category, but he needs it!

Because he needs money, customs, control leaving BiH, and at the head of this institution is his Zoran Tegeltija. After years of rule by Miro Džakula (HDZ), the Troika failed to secure this position, in fact, they did not even fight for it.

It was in vain that SDP Vice President Vojin Mijatović said that the position of director of the Indirect Taxation Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ITA BiH) must not go to a cadre coming from the SNSD.

“If some get playful and give the ITA to the SNSD, then let's give them all other positions. The ITA must belong to the coalition around the SDP BiH,” Mijatović stated.

And they did get playful and placed Tegeltija at the head of ITA BiH.

Zoran Tegeltija (SNSD) was the best candidate in the interview for the competition for director of the Indirect Taxation Authority (ITA) of BiH, achieving a score of 10.

In second place remained Mladen Zirojević with an average score of 8.5. Besides Tegeltija and Zirojević, the competition conditions were also met by the chief auditor of the Office for Audit of Institutions in the FBiH Dževad Nekić, assistant director of the IT Sector of the ITA Svjetlana Perković, and Saudin Terzić and Dženan Musemić.

So, it is not that the ruling parties were not warned what would happen, but there was no ear for well-intentioned advice coming from pro-Bosniak ranks.

And there are reasons to review the work in the ITA. To begin with, it should be noted that the Indirect Taxation Authority of BiH has not implemented the recommendation of the Internal Audit Department since 2017, which should ensure that the employee structure of ITA BiH reflects the national structure of the population in BiH according to the last census. The deadline for implementing the recommendations was six months. However, the one relating to the national structure of employees has never been implemented.

During the time of director Miro Džakula (HDZ), and then Zoran Tegeltija (SNSD), the national balance was significantly disrupted to the detriment of Bosniaks as the most numerous people in BiH. Things did not change much even after Tegeltija came to the head of the ITA in June 2023.

According to the employee records of ITA BiH, at the beginning of August 2024, there were 2,195 permanent employees, of which 878 were Bosniaks, 845 Serbs, 461 Croats, and 11 others. Percentage-wise, Bosniaks make up 40 percent, Serbs 38.50, Croats 21, and others 0.50 percent.

Given that the last conducted census from 2013 is applied, this means that in ITA BiH there are 222 fewer Bosniaks than there should be.

However, if we apply the statement of Elmedin Konaković given regarding the discrimination of candidate Fahrudin Halač (Bosniak) for security agencies, which was established by the Court of BiH and which Konaković does not dispute, then we cannot expect action regarding the ITA either.

Let us recall, after the current composition of the Council of Ministers was appointed, Serbian and Croatian candidates who had passed the competition procedure were appointed to director or deputy director positions, while cadres of Bosniak nationality were excluded from the appointment process so that the parties of the Troika could prepare the appointment of cadres suitable to themselves.

These appointees from the SNSD quota have mostly gone to a meeting with Milorad Dodik, where, among other things, it was stated that Serbs will withdraw from BiH institutions when the laws adopted in the NSRS come into force.

The silence from the state is concerning, while only lukewarm statements are heard that institutions will do their job. Which institutions, because for starters, it was expected that Borjana Krišto would react to the departure of the heads of police agencies to Banja Luka, but she behaves as if none of the events concern her, even though she is the Prime Minister of the Council of Ministers of BiH.

It is obvious that she is waiting for the nod from Dragan Čović, her party boss, or tomorrow's gathering of the HNS. But what is the third component of the government waiting for, while the heads of institutions that should be a guarantee of citizen safety sit in Banja Luka with Dodik?

Now it is visible that the concentration of political power is in the hands of certain political parties, such as the SNSD and HDZ, and Bosniaks, although they are the most numerous people, are not evenly represented in institutions such as ITA BiH, which Dodik does not consider an imposed institution – because he needs money more than the original Dayton.