Kebo requested assessment of constitutionality of anti-corruption laws

The Vice President of the Federation of BiH Mirsad Kebo sent a request to the Constitutional Court of the Federation of BiH for an assessment of the constitutionality of the Bill on Combating Corruption and Crime and the Law on Confiscation of Illegally Acquired Property, adopted by the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliament on May 6 this year, the Patria news agency reported.

The request, as stated, also asked for a temporary measure to suspend the procedure of considering the disputed laws until a final verdict is reached, and for a verdict that would assess that the laws in question are not in accordance with the Constitution of the Federation of BiH.

Regarding the Bill on Combating Corruption and Crime in the FBiH, the explanation states, among other things, that the constitutional provisions cited by the proposer of the Law cannot be the basis for its adoption. Furthermore, this constitutes a gross violation of the provisions of the Constitution of the FBiH. The Federation of BiH already has legally established judicial bodies and judicial police, and their organizational structure could only be changed by amending those laws.

It is stated that the provision cited by the proposer of the Bill on Confiscation of Illegally Acquired Property is also unconstitutional. The explanation, among other things, explains this by the fact that the disputed law suspends the provisions of other laws that regulate issues of detection, confiscation, and management of confiscated property. The management of confiscated property can be transferred to a special administrative body by establishing a special body, but this administrative body could not be equal to or above judicial bodies in any way.

The appeal by the Vice President of the FBiH Mirsad Kebo only helps to adopt effective laws in accordance with European standards and the recommendations of the Venice Commission, the statement said, Patria reported.