Džanko-Zukobašić: Will Sarajevo welcome the New Year 2026 in darkness?!

(Patria) - Member of the Party for BiH in the Municipal Council of Novi Grad Sarajevo, Nejra Džanko-Zukobašić, posted a status on her Facebook page asking if Sarajevo will welcome the New Year 2026 in darkness?

"A long time ago, the City of Sarajevo, together with the Tourist Board of Sarajevo Canton, launched the 'Sarajevo Stories' project, which turned this city into a New Year's center of the region.

With serious preparation and timely promotion, Sarajevo was a city that filled up to its last seat during the New Year holidays.

Hotels, restaurants, cafes - everything was working, tourists were coming, and Sarajevo was shining. The celebration was planned months in advance, performers were chosen on time, contracts were signed during the summer period, and by the beginning of November at the latest.

Noticing the media silence, two months before the New Year 2026 celebration and aware of the fact that the public knows absolutely nothing, I asked several questions at the third working session of the City Council of Sarajevo:

• In which phase is the public procurement procedure for the organization of the celebration?
• Has the tender even been initiated and when?
• If so, why is there no information about the contractor, agency, and contract?
• If not, why are we late, and how much will this cost us again?

I also reminded that last year, according to available information, the contract for organizing the celebration amounted to about 800,000 KM - a figure that caused a wave of public indignation and serious questions about the transparency and rationality of spending budget funds.

Does Sarajevo still have no known contractor, no signed contract, no trace of a campaign that would reposition Sarajevo as a regional destination for the New Year holidays?

Silence has replaced planning and promotion. Every lost day means fewer tourists, less promotion, and less revenue. And what has been built over the years through the 'Sarajevo Stories' is now slowly being dismantled in silence.

The irresponsibility and lack of seriousness of the Sarajevo City management further deepen this problem, giving the impression that there is a lack of genuine care for the development and image of the city.

I also remind that immediately after the coronavirus pandemic, the 'Sarajevo Stories' was successfully organized, and the main performer at the time was Željko Joksimović - proof that with will and responsibility, excellent results can be achieved.

Sarajevo deserves more than last-minute improvisation. It deserves a plan, a vision, and seriousness," said Džanko-Zukobašić.