Hasanović blocked, Omerbašić favorite: FBiH Tax Administration on the verge of chaos!

By: Amina Čorbo-Zećo

Although according to the completed tender procedure, the Deputy Minister of Finance of BiH, Muhamed Hasanović, was supposed to be appointed Director of the FBiH Tax Administration, his appointment has been blocked for months. After publicly supporting Zijad Krnjić in the case of the UIO Management Board, stating that Krnjić "is doing the right thing", Hasanović's chances of taking over the Tax Administration have become even slimmer.

At the same time, within the institution, political groundwork is being laid for announcing a new tender, whose favorite is expected to be Admir Omerbašić, the acting director who is currently leading the institution on the verge of a strike.

The strike begins on Monday, 12/15, and for this reason, Omerbašić held a meeting with the Union on Monday, but was joined by five managers who claimed that Omerbašić was acting in accordance with the law.

No concrete agreement was reached, and employees point to mass transfers without consent, a shortage of 500 employees, pressure, non-compliance with salary agreements, and long-standing organizational failures. An instruction on how to conduct the warning strike is now awaited.

In such a tense atmosphere, the managers' letter, especially the one "prepared" by the previous request for signatories to declare themselves, appears to be an attempt by the management to create an illusion of stability and legitimacy, instead of facing the system's fundamental problems.

The public is presented with an image of a homogeneous management that allegedly enjoys the full support of the structure, while at the same time, a struggle for basic workers' rights, adherence to procedures, and legality is taking place. Thus, two Tax Administrations are being formed: one defended by "loyal" managers, and the other where workers suffer the consequences of neglect, lack of staff, and poor organization.

In an institution entering a strike, where controversial transfers are being withdrawn and solutions for basic working conditions are being sought, one would expect the management to state how it intends to stabilize the situation. Instead, subordinates are asked to praise it.

And when an institution with so many problems is managed by an acting director whose appointment depends on a political decision and a new tender, then this search for formal support from subordinates does not convey an impression of management strength, but of deep insecurity.