Will the work of the Commission for Deciding on Conflicts of Interest finally be unblocked

Members of the Joint Commission for Human Rights were also informed about the problems in the implementation of the Law on Conflicts of Interest in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, writes the Patria News Agency.

Based on the facts presented about the problems in the implementation of the Law, it was concluded that the Commission for Deciding on Conflicts of Interest is unable to prepare and submit a report on the implementation of the Law on Conflicts of Interest in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The work of this commission is currently completely blocked, and the problem could be resolved in the House of Representatives of the PSBiH. The problem has been ongoing since December 23 last year, when the delivery of mail to the Commission was completely stopped, so they are currently in a situation where they are violating not only the Law on Deciding on Conflicts of Interest, because they are supposed to work according to that law, but also other laws related to conducting proceedings.

Precisely because of the major problems, at the session on May 24, the request of MPs Mladen Bosić, Šefik Džaferović, and Borjana Krišto to consider the Bill on Amendments to the Law on Conflicts of Interest in the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina under an urgent procedure is on the agenda, and the amendments specify that the Commission will use the seal of the Agency for Prevention of Corruption and Coordination of Fight against Corruption.

- During the implementation of the provisions of the Law on Conflicts of Interest in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, certain shortcomings were observed regarding the performance of administrative tasks within the jurisdiction of the Commission for Deciding on Conflicts of Interest, specifically - the issue of using the seal to certify decisions and official acts of the Commission. Therefore, the Joint Collegium of both houses of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH obliged the Collegium of the Secretariat to prepare amendments to the aforementioned law - in the part concerning the use of the seal of the Agency for Prevention of Corruption and Coordination of Fight against Corruption for the work of the Commission - it is stated in the explanation of the amendments to the Law.

Until the problem is finally resolved, citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina will not have information on whether ministers and deputy ministers are, among other things, members of companies in which the ministry invests capital, whether they finance their own companies with budget funds, or whether they employ close relatives in the departments they manage.

It will also remain unknown whether they receive gifts or other benefits for employment or services rendered.

Otherwise, the Commission consists of three members each from the House of Representatives and the House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH, as well as the director and deputy directors of the Agency for Prevention of Corruption and Coordination of Fight against Corruption of BiH. The chairperson and at least one-third of the members of the Commission from each house will be from opposition parties.

Earlier, when this Commission was formed, great dissatisfaction was expressed, because according to the amendments to the Law, the determination of conflicts of interest is transferred from the Central Election Commission of BiH to the jurisdiction of the newly formed commission, which was characterized as unacceptable.