Kovačević is only a threat to the anti-state policy of HDZ, if Konaković cares, he should be Čović's candidate!

(Patria) - The loudest reaction to the Democratic Front's (DF) decision to nominate Slaven Kovačević as a candidate for the BiH Presidency member from the Croat people in the 2026 General Elections came from the Minister of Foreign Affairs of BiH and leader of the Party of Justice and Progress (NiP), Elmedin Konaković.

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Slaven Kovačević will be DF's candidate for BiH Presidency member from the Croat people

(Patria) - The Presidency of the Democratic Front at today's session made a decision on the candidacy for the member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 2026 General Elections. The candidate of the Democratic Front for the member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Hercego

In a video published on social networks, Konaković said, among other things, that "no one minds that Slaven Kovačević is a Croat", and added that "we told him he was a Croat even when he claimed to be an 'other' in that appeal to the European Court of Human Rights".

- This famous candidacy of Slaven Kovačević - a Croat is a cliché that we have seen from DF multiple times - even when they signed those famous petitions for a civic state. They have truly, both then and now, played with the emotions and rights of people who do not belong to ethnic groups - said Konaković, claiming that HDZ BiH will build its election campaign for the next elections on Kovačević's candidacy.

Professor of International Relations and Geopolitics at the International University of Sarajevo, Jahja Muhasilović, told the Patria News Agency (NAP) that Konaković has once again confirmed the extent to which his worldview and perspective on BiH politics are colored by the interests of Zagreb and HDZ - both of Croatia and BiH.

- This, of course, does not surprise us, given the policy he has pursued in recent years, especially since he formed NiP. This was particularly evident during the period when negotiations on amendments to the Election Law were held in Neum - and at that time he decided to accept all the most extreme forms of apartheid that were offered.

Even much more extreme forms of apartheid offered by certain circles of the international community, which were much more radical, extreme, and unfavorable for Bosniaks and Bosnia and Herzegovina than those ultimately imposed by Christian Schmidt. Konaković has only once again confirmed the epithet of "a nice boy from Zagreb" - said Muhasilović.

Besides, as Professor Muhasilović says, having such wrong, perverse, and very harmful views for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Konaković is also trying to remain politically relevant, and therefore is now using the opportunity to present himself as a conversationalist in this entire process, even though he has absolutely nothing to do with it.

- He is neither a member of DF, nor does he likely intend to be a candidate for the BiH Presidency member from the Croat people, so this is not a topic he should be dealing with at all. However, it is clear from this that he is controlled by Dragan Čović and Zagreb - Muhasilović believes.

According to him, Konaković is trying to become (or remain) relevant because he is aware that his political party is rapidly losing popularity, which was evident in the last Local Elections.

- It is obvious that he expects a huge drop in his party's popularity and constantly tries to stay relevant, so he gets involved in all daily political topics, whether he has anything to do with them or not, and he deals least with his job, i.e., his responsibilities, which include, among other things, quality lobbying in centers of power for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

However, it turned out that he did that in a dilettantish way too, using various companies that deal with the installation and repair of air conditioners, and trying to promote a lobbying story in Washington through them, which, of course, failed in the end, like most of his projects. Because, Dino Konaković is a politician who has left behind a "graveyard" of unfinished and unsuccessful projects - emphasizes Muhasilović.

We asked him how he commented on Konaković's claims that Kovačević embarrassed BiH before the European Court of Human Rights because, as he stated, he declared himself as an "other" in that appeal. However, what Konaković omitted to mention is that Kovačević did not sue Bosnia and Herzegovina in his capacity as a member of the "others", but due to a violation of active voting rights, where ethnic affiliation is not relevant at all.

- Well, Konaković is not sufficiently informed about this, and he takes things out of context. He is known as someone who interprets things in a way that is politically convenient for him at that moment and takes things out of context and does so constantly. This was no exception.

He is, of course, wrong, because Kovačević declares himself as a Croat, and he has an absolute right to do so at the level of individual rights, and the Constitution also allows him to declare himself and run as a Croat.

However, when he went to the European Court of Human Rights, he did not go as a representative of Croats, it was not important at all at that moment how he declared himself. He went to defend the interests of Bosnia and Herzegovina because the current Constitution threatens the rights of ordinary citizens.

Kovačević's appeal is specific in this regard, unlike others that the European Court of Human Rights has accepted, because it recognizes discrimination at a territorial level, where citizens cannot choose the candidate they want due to territorial restrictions.

And Kovačević's appeal is very important for this reason, and he actually went to fight to improve these discriminatory laws against the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regardless of their ethnic affiliation.

His ethnic affiliation at that moment, nor how Slaven Kovačević declares himself, had absolutely nothing to do with that appeal, nor with the outcome of the verdict. And Konaković is, of course, trying to misuse this.

But what is indicative is that he misuses it in exactly the same way that HDZ BiH tries to misuse it. Dino Konaković is completely synchronized with the HDZ narrative, and it would be most honest for him to run as an HDZ candidate, because he is clearly pursuing an HDZ policy, given that he has identical views with HDZ and Zagreb on every issue - emphasizes Muhasilović.

In the continuation of the conversation, he denied Konaković's claims that DF, by nominating Slaven Kovačević, reduces space for the opposition among Croats and helps HDZ BiH.

- No one is preventing the Croatian opposition, if such exists, from having its own candidate for the member of the BiH Presidency. It formally exists on paper. However, when it comes to the effective implementation of policies, we see that this opposition is not significantly different from HDZ. But, if there is an opposition coalition against HDZ, no one is preventing it from coming forward with its own candidate.

Now, various names are mentioned as potential candidates, including Martin Raguž and some others. If that happens, such a coalition could threaten HDZ the most, and Slaven Kovačević himself cannot.

Because, many HDZ voters who are disappointed with the policies of HDZ BiH and who would eventually vote for some other Croatian counter-candidate, I don't believe they would vote for Slaven Kovačević anyway, so in that sense, they do not address the same base.

Of course, cooperation is not excluded, regardless of Slaven Kovačević, which should have happened long ago, between the Croatian opposition and pro-Bosnian parties. That is, of course, never excluded, and the pro-Bosnian side should extend a hand to such a Croatian coalition and work together in the interest of both Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Bosniak and Croat peoples in BiH.

So, Slaven Kovačević is not harmful in that sense. The only one whom Slaven Kovačević is currently causing "damage" to is HDZ BiH and its apartheid policy, which has ultimately harmed not only Bosniaks but also Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Especially Croats living in central Bosnia, Posavina, and in Republika Srpska. Not Croats in Herzegovina, but in these three geographical regions.

And if the Croatian opposition truly means well for its people, they should definitely come forward with their own joint candidate, and not formally put someone forward while essentially supporting HDZ BiH, because HDZ's policy has harmed Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina the most.

I repeat, the only ones who are truly bothered by Slaven Kovačević's candidacy are HDZ BiH and Zagreb, and it is good that Dino Konaković and many others from the Trojka have openly shown their true colors, which is that they are working in the interest of Zagreb and Croatia. Because we even see that they are much louder than HDZ BiH in this campaign being waged against Slaven Kovačević - concludes Muhasilović in an interview with NAP.

(D.K.)