Galić: The National Assembly of Republika Srpska has a constitutional obligation to elect Constitutional Court judges

(Patria) - The President of the Constitutional Court of BiH, Valerija Galić, could not specify when this court will rule on the appeal of the legal teams in the "Respirators" case, but stated that it will proceed in that case as in all other cases.

To one of the questions about whether the Constitutional Court is aware of the public's declining trust in its work, Galić said that the competent authorities in RS are proponents of respecting the BiH Constitution.

"It is their obligation to fulfill their duties in filling the Constitutional Court judges. A colleague himself said that he left, whether under pressure or considering his obligation if the National Assembly of Republika Srpska called for his resignation, he assessed that it should be done. My attitude towards the obligations of the legislative authorities, the House of Representatives that elected me as a judge in 2002, and colleague Knežević, is different. We probably have different views on the legislative bodies that elected us," she said.

Judge Seada Palavrić said that the National Assembly of Republika Srpska is indeed a body elected to represent the interests of citizens.

"We cannot say that if someone does not like a decision of the Constitutional Court of BiH, it is a loss of public trust. It is never heard in the National Assembly of Republika Srpska when the Constitutional Court assesses the constitutionality of a law passed by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska and determines that it is in accordance with the Constitution. When the National Assembly of Republika Srpska acts as the state's legislative body and attempts to usurp state competencies, then the Constitutional Court must protect the state and must make decisions as required by the Constitution. If this is a loss of public trust, then that is some theory I have not heard of," said Palavrić.

The Vice-President of the Constitutional Court of BiH, Judge Hellen Keller, said that the number of appeals received from RS also shows the trust of citizens from BiH, including that entity.

Galić emphasized that the Constitutional Court has excellent cooperation with the judiciary in RS and that they are unhappy that there are no colleagues from RS.

Regarding the request for an assessment of the constitutionality of land allocation in Vareš and the sale of land in Jahorina, as it concerns state property, Galić stated that this request has not yet been considered.

"I know it is a request for a temporary measure. The plenary session has now taken over the role of the Small Council that decided on temporary measures. The case is in progress, but in accordance with the Rules, we assess, especially when a temporary measure is requested, and we decide accordingly," said Galić.