The horse remains the same, and the riders are not changing either

No government in Bosnia and Herzegovina has announced more spectacular reforms than this one persistently does. Ambitions at the start of the mandate were enormous; thousands of new jobs, lightning-fast steps towards the European Union, as well as almost certain admission to NATO...

Today we can say that promises are being fulfilled slowly. Or they are not being fulfilled at all. Or if they do fulfill something, the way they do it is not right. Today these are slow steps, one forward, two back. One might say: The horse remains the same, and the riders are not changing either.

Almost a year and a half after the elections, the authorities in both the Federation and Republika Srpska have only adopted entity-level Labor Laws. At least when it comes to key reform laws. And even that was adopted by force. In the Federation, it turned out to be incomplete. For months, Prime Minister Novalić defended it, and then he criticized it and demanded its changes. All of that again haphazardly. The other adopted laws are more cosmetic changes. Something like mafia-style makeup on a corpse. Without substantive reforms, nothing is worth anything and will not be long-lasting.

The federal coalition, which promised unity and strong reform steps more than anything else, is not functioning very well either. The SBB is tightening due to the arrest of Fahrudin Radončić. At one point, it seemed as if old hostilities would return, but political pragmatism prevailed. The coalition has held together apparently because the SDA and SBB are clinging to each other.

All the while, only the HDZ BiH and Dragan Čović are profiting. They are in an advantageous position both politically and economically. The Party of Democratic Action allowed them, through the Labor Law, to prohibit federal inspectors from entering Herzegovina. This made Čović the absolute master of the economy in Western Herzegovina. If he succeeds, through the Coordination Mechanism, in getting the cantons to have a say in Bosnia and Herzegovina's fate in negotiations with Brussels, Čović will get a third entity. It just won't be called that publicly, but it will live freely and independently. They will christen it later.

It is unclear whether Croats will have any benefit from this, but Čović certainly will. Just as he now benefits from the story of the endangerment of the Croatian people in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As things stand, when it comes to national and national interests in Bosnia and Herzegovina, only endangerment pays off. And only endangerment is profitable.

The HDZ also fared well during the distribution of budget money. Local events in Herzegovina received more money than the world-famous Sarajevo Film Festival. Croats do not dispute the injustice towards Sarajevo, but they say they are returning the favor to Bosniaks. They are both pleased and gratified. At one time, a similar minister gave more for bowling than for numerous successful sports in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In Republika Srpska, the situation is even worse. The authorities do not know how to proceed. The referendum is a good trick, but they cannot push it forever. Dodik is shouting less and less, and gesticulating more and more. He looks a bit like a rapper. In Sarajevo, because of this, they say that Dodik, like a rapper, is announcing a "Rapperendum." No one knows what Dodik's next step is. Dodik himself does not know either. The opposition is seeking power, but praying to God they do not get it. Because they do not know what they would do if citizens gave them their trust. You cannot shoot from an empty gun. Dodik spent whatever money there was from the sale of Telekom. Citizens expect the new authorities to raise the standard of living and stabilize prices. But who can do that with empty coffers? Even the payment of salaries to the numerous and bloated administration in the RS is being called into question.

One must not even speak about pensioners and pensions. Such stress would be fatal for them. They even rejoice when they meet the postman.

The situation is somewhat better at the state level. At least seemingly. Minister Mirko Šarović managed to open the EU market to a part of BH food producers.

The Presidency boasts that by mid-February it will submit an application for Bosnia and Herzegovina's membership in the European Union. Unfortunately, experts warn that this is a mouthful that could choke Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Europe is too far away. When our people show the application to Europeans, it is not known how they will react. One politician called this application a ticket to Europe. If they tear up that ticket for us at the entrance to Europe, like at the entrance to a match, our politicians will turn it into a victory.

Our culture is also at a low level. As we said, money goes to mowing. Books and writers are still deprived. The state does not care about their status. They are increasingly on par with journalists. Everyone respects them, but why they are respected is not visible. A state that does not take care of education does not take care of educated people either.

But the state does not take care of athletes either. They, who are great ambassadors of this country. Their success does more for this country than the failures of our politicians do against this country. Incidentally, those who constantly talk about how they never stop working and thinking about this country should at least take a breather. The state is increasingly struggling to bear their care and their loyalty; we are all getting more tired of their enormous patriotism.

I fear that in BiH we have forgotten that politics is an important job. That managing a state requires knowledge and inventiveness. That is, the ability to lead certain processes. And that even politics is always in the service of the economy.

Here, unfortunately, politicians end their careers without mentioning development, investments, employment, and, say, raising the standard of living. They do not mention high salaries, a pleasant life, wonderful vacations in exotic destinations. They do not want to talk about the privacies of their own lives.

Salvation lies in thinking that our life is not a cliché and that many people live difficult lives. Salvation lies in ordinary human compassion, and that is harder than our leaders can even imagine.