Izetbegović and Lagumdžija in a negotiated war: SDA and SDP sacrifice aid for flood victims!

More than three months before the elections, BiH authorities are entering an absolute blockade after the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP) have started a final showdown, reports the BiH news agency Patria (NAP).

SDA has decided to support the dismissal of SDP leader Zlatko Lagumdžija from the Council of Ministers of BiH, initiated by the Alliance for Better Future, thus announcing the end of a kind of truce in which these two parties have tried to keep at least the Government of the Federation of BiH functional.

Admittedly, the leaders of these two parties, Bakir Izetbegović and Lagumdžija, have not yet engaged in any personal clashes, and only lower-ranking party officials are criticizing each other. This, as Patria learns, could be the result of an agreement between Izetbegović and Lagumdžija to dig up the hatchets for the sake of the campaign, but to only use the "infantry" in this party "war", saving the artillery for other rivals, primarily SBB, Democratic Front, and independent candidate Mustafa Cerić.

However, SDA's support for Lagumdžija's dismissal will, by all accounts, be the trigger for a fierce battle between these two parties that will last at least until the October elections, and the citizens of BiH and FBiH affected by the catastrophic floods will bear the brunt of it.

Namely, the first indicator of the consequences of the escalating conflict was yesterday's session of the House of Representatives of FBiH, where the law on establishing a fund for flood victims was not adopted due to insufficient SDA votes. Although this was justified by the representatives' other obligations, it is clear that SDA showed its teeth to SDP and sent a message that Prime Minister Nermin Nikšić cannot do anything without SDA's support.

Therefore, the adoption of this law is, at best, postponed. But even if it is adopted, in the situation of a fierce SDA-SDP conflict, it will be extremely difficult to distribute the enormous, multi-million aid needed by tens of thousands of people efficiently, transparently, and accurately.

According to sources from the BiH news agency Patria, from circles close to Nikšić, the Prime Minister hopes that his government will be able to act despite the conflict between the two parties at the state level. Despite the difficult political environment, the current convocation has always found a way to function. However, three months before the elections, this will be extremely difficult, especially if Lagumdžija is indeed dismissed.

The situation is similar at the state level, where the Council of Ministers of BiH is already showing signs of "pre-election atrophy" of all activities and initiatives, and there are fewer and fewer ministers. The BiH Parliament has announced only one or two more sessions until the elections, and the BiH Presidency also shows no interest in more intensive action, reports NAP.