Dunović withdraws consent for the election of the FBiH Government

Milan Dunović, Vice President of the FBiH, sent a letter to the President of the FBiH, Marinko Čavara, withdrawing his consent for the election of the FBiH Government, the Patria News Agency has learned.

We obtained the document from sources close to President Čavara, which states that Vice President Dunović is invoking the Constitution of the FBiH regarding the minimal representation of constituent peoples in the FBiH Government.

Otherwise, the Government of the Federation of BiH will not be formed for some time, because Čović has reneged on the agreement with Izetbegović and Komšić.

It would be unconstitutional for SDA or DF to participate in the formation of such a Government outside the constitutionally prescribed quota, a source from the top of SDA told the Patria News Agency.

The Constitution of the Federation of BiH specifies that the FBiH Government has eight Bosniak, five Croat, and three Serb ministerial positions, with one position from the quota of the most numerous people being able to be excluded and given to a member of the 'others' category.

During the political negotiations between Dragan Čović, Bakir Izetbegović, and Željko Komšić, when they all gave up some of their previously maximalist demands, a compromise solution was reached whereby SDA would provide six Bosniak ministers (plus a Bosniak Prime Minister), DF would provide three Serb ministers and one Bosniak minister, while HDZ would undertake to appoint cadres from the Croat people to five out of six ministerial positions, and one from the 'others' category.

However, at today's session, HDZ's candidate for Minister of Culture and Sports, Zora Dujmović, insisted, on direct orders from Čović, to declare herself as Serb, not from the 'others' category, despite everyone trying to persuade her to do so in order to unblock the confirmation of the new Government.

Had Dujmović declared herself as from the 'others' category, two sessions of the House of Representatives would have had to be held, because the Prime Minister appoints someone from the 'others' category, and then the representatives confirm it in a second session.

Thus, due to Čović's political game, there is now one Serb too many in the FBiH Government, and he promised exactly that to his partner and friend Milorad Dodik.