Commission Demands Reports and Answers, BHANSA Offers Numbers: Only One of Three Management Board Members at Public Hearing

(Patria) - A public hearing on the work and operations of the Air Navigation Services Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BHANSA) is underway in Sarajevo, organized by the Commission for Transport and Communications of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH. However, the hearing is not attended by BHANSA Director Davorin Primorac and one of his deputies, Tomislav Marinković, as they are on sick leave, just as they were when the first public hearing was scheduled for January 20th.

The session was opened by Commission Chairman Jasmin Imamović, who recalled months of correspondence and conclusions by which the Commission requested information from BHANSA regarding the sick leaves of operational staff, financial status, funds needed for smooth operations, and net salary amounts per job position.

"At its 31st session on July 8, 2025, the Commission adopted a conclusion requesting the Agency to provide information on the current situation at BHANSA… the monthly amount of funds necessary for smooth operations… the net salary amount for each job position… salaries of the director and deputies… and a list of all employees by location," said Imamović.

Imamović stated that the Commission had previously assessed that BHANSA was providing incomplete answers, and due to the refusal to submit the requested documentation, an inspection by the Administrative Inspectorate was also requested.

Mehmedović: Parliament is the founder, we are not a "third party"

MP Šemsudin Mehmedović, as the initiator, emphasized that parliamentary oversight is a legal obligation, and that BHANSA, according to him, cannot treat the Commission as a "third party".

"The law stipulates that the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH and the Council of Ministers exercise the rights, obligations, and responsibilities on behalf of the Agency's founder… we are not any third party," said Mehmedović.

He also recalled a previous hearing in 2015, when, as he stated, all invited representatives attended.

"Back then, all invited attended the hearing, and interestingly, no one was sick," said Mehmedović.

He also warned about the provisions of the Law on Parliamentary Oversight, which give the Commission the right to inspect documentation, and mentioned the penalty provisions for obstructing oversight.

"The management of BHANSA is grossly violating the law and obstructing parliamentary oversight," said Mehmedović, listing the documents the Commission is seeking – from financial data to reports for 2024 and copies of public procurement contracts.

Emrić – Hadžiomerović Debate: "You say it's on the web, but it's not"

The debate between Commission member Jasmin Emrić and BHANSA Deputy Director Sanjin Hadžiomerović attracted the most attention, especially regarding the claim that the requested reports are available on the Agency's website.

Hadžiomerović stated that the annual reports are publicly available, and that BHANSA also submits an "Annual Report" within the European framework.

Emrić, however, opened the website and claimed that he could not find the requested annual report.

"You said that all reports are published on the agency's website… I opened the website, searched everything, and I cannot find the report," said Emrić, showing his laptop.

Hadžiomerović then explained the difference between the reports adopted by the Council of Ministers and what BHANSA has published, stating that the annual report for 2024 was adopted and published in a summarized form in the Official Gazette.

"The BHANSA Council adopted the report for 2024 on June 5, 2025, the Council of Ministers on July 22, 2025, and it was published in the Official Gazette, number 55, on September 19, 2025… the Official Gazette publishes a summary and the opinion of the independent auditor," said Hadžiomerović.

He also added that the report submitted to EUROCONTROL is a copy of the data from the annual report, and that he brought it in printed form.

"There are no reports adopted by the Council of Ministers on the agency's website. There are none," said Hadžiomerović.

Emrić emphasized that the Commission's problem is not understanding the procedure, but rather not receiving the report as they had in the past.

"Why didn't you provide us with the report we requested, as you regularly did before?" asked Emrić, reminding that the Commission had previously received reports in physical form.

"I cannot speak on behalf of the other two management board members"

When directly asked if the report for 2024 would be submitted to the Commission, Hadžiomerović replied that it was not a problem for him personally, but that he could not speak on behalf of the other two management board members.

"I am convinced… I cannot speak on behalf of the other two management board members. According to BHANSA's statute, these decisions are made by a majority vote… it requires the director and one other vote," said Hadžiomerović.

This formulation raised further questions from Commission members – from when such a majority became necessary to insisting that Director Primorac personally answer the key questions.

BHANSA Presents Figures: Revenues, Expenses, Investments

After requests for shorter and more specific answers, Hadžiomerović presented the basic financial figures.

"Total revenues for 2024 amounted to 79,235,654 KM. Employee expenses amounted to 52,695,835 KM," said Hadžiomerović.

He also presented data on investments:

"Investments for 2024 amounted to 21,902,508 KM. Investments for 2025 are 20,495,184 KM, and the capital investment plan for 2026 is 26,949,491 KM."

Emrić, however, insisted that the Commission wanted the complete report, not to "memorize millions".

"Provide us with the report we requested for 2024… you don't need to force us to write down these figures now," said Emrić.

Salaries and Privacy: Dispute over "Confidentiality"

The Commission repeatedly requested net salaries per job position, but BHANSA had previously stated that "individual salary payments are not public" and that they are personal data, citing the Law on Labor in BiH Institutions and the Law on Personal Data Protection.

Chairwoman of the BHANSA Council, Sanja Škuletić-Malagić, said that she personally believes transparency should be the standard.

"I personally believe that there is no institution… where citizens do not have the right to know what those salaries are and what they are managing," said Škuletić-Malagić.

She added that at BHANSA, according to her, there is a specificity that employee salaries can be higher than management income, and that the issue of transparency should be clarified through competent legal interpretations.

Air Traffic Controllers: Departure to Qatar and UAE, Contracts Extended
One of the key topics of the hearing was the departure of air traffic controllers and measures to retain staff.

Škuletić-Malagić stated that eight controllers had left BHANSA to go to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, and that controllers, according to analyses, are among the lowest paid in the region and the EU.

"Controllers have the lowest salaries in the region and the European Union… eight controllers have gone to Qatar and the UAE," said Škuletić-Malagić.

She also highlighted the increase in controllers' salaries.

"Controllers' salaries have been increased by 25% this year," she stated, adding that BHANSA has 147 controllers and that the number is currently higher compared to the same period last year.

When asked if training is "tied by contract," she replied that the previous obligation was six years, and it has been extended to 10 years.

"Previously, we had a contractual obligation for a period of six years… since last year, controllers are contractually obligated for a period of 10 years," said Škuletić-Malagić.

Who Controls the Airspace Above BiH?
The Commission was also interested in the delegation of part of BiH's airspace to neighboring countries. Hadžiomerović said that the delegation of the northwestern part of the airspace (the so-called "Komar line") was done in 2008, before BHANSA was founded.

"The delegation occurred in 2008… BHANSA was founded in 2009, established in 2011, and inherited that part of the delegation," said Hadžiomerović.

He emphasized that the delegation was an operational measure within the framework of "Single European Sky," for the sake of flow and safety, and that sovereignty was not compromised.

"The sovereignty of that airspace has not been violated at any moment… the delegation was solely for operational reasons," said Hadžiomerović.

Commission's Insistence: The Director Must Answer

During the debate, several Commission members – particularly Emrić and Mehmedović – insisted that Director Primorac personally answer questions related to the requested documents, statutes, strategy, and responsibilities. The hearing, with several interruptions and calls for shorter answers, showed that the Commission is seeking more complete documentation and clearer explanations, while BHANSA explains part of the requests through procedures, statutory rules, and limitations that, as it claims, arise from laws and European obligations, N1 reports.