Izetbegović in panic seeks to renew ties with Šeto: A slap in the face to Denis Zvizdić

The Deputy President of the Party of Democratic Action and the party's candidate for the BiH Presidency member, Bakir Izetbegović, fears defeat in the elections and is intensively trying to lobby for support from former SDA members and smaller political parties, the BiH news agency Patria (NAP) has learned.

Izetbegović's biggest concern is the fact that he is not sure of the votes of traditional SDA voters, who are confused by the divisions within the party and are increasingly deciding to support the main rivals.   

Namely, Izetbegović, as Patria reliably learned, a little more than a month before the elections, suddenly requested a meeting with the former president of the Cantonal Board of SDA in Sarajevo, but still an influential politician, Abdulharis Šeto. It is not known whether the meeting took place or what its outcome was.

However, according to unofficial information, Izetbegović wants to win support for the elections, but also in a way to bring Šeto back into the SDA leadership from which he was removed in a dubious manner, precisely because of Denis Zvizdić, and from the Sarajevo Cantonal Board of SDA.

Patria's sources close to Izetbegović's cabinet warn that renewing ties with Šeto indicates that the current Deputy President of SDA is losing confidence in his closest advisors and associates, and that he increasingly realizes that due to his connections and closeness to them, he is only losing votes on the ground.

It is not excluded, as we learn, that Izetbegović sought Šeto's favor due to information that the current member of the BiH Presidency enjoys less and less trust in official Ankara, so renewing friendship and cooperation with Šeto, who has good connections in Turkey, would be a lifeline, NAP reports.

We remind you that Šeto achieved a notable result in a recent poll on possible new SDA leaders, far better than Izetbegović's expectations.

On the other hand, Šeto's potential return is a slap in the face to Denis Zvizdić, the current head of Sarajevo SDA, who has had a simmering conflict with Izetbegović for some time. Many believe that Zvizdić must already pack his bags and take responsibility for the financial collapse of Sarajevo Canton, which will, by all accounts, significantly harm SDA's election results.