Kovačević: Mass turnout at elections will prevent theft, do not let someone else vote for you

Political analyst and professor at the Faculty of Criminalistics, Criminology and Security Studies of the University of Sarajevo Goran Kovačević, speaking on FACE TV, discussed current political developments in BiH, reports the Patria news agency.

His opinion is that the session of the PIC Steering Board, which was supposed to consider the issue of holding a referendum in the RS, was postponed because there is a possibility that opinions among the ambassadors of member countries are divided.

-It is expected that Russia will veto, i.e., side with holding the referendum, but also that other measures will be left to give the High Representative the opportunity to use the Bonn Powers, says Kovačević.

The referendum in the RS, he believes, is happening like a series of other political tricks generally used by the political position, i.e., the ruling parties.

-If the referendum were not before the elections, I would say it is not an election trick, and it could have been held after October 2. Because the eventual results of the referendum cannot affect the change of the current entity government. Even if it is organized, the counting will last until after the elections. Either way, whether this referendum is held or not, it suits the nationalist parties that are trying to achieve a better result in the elections, is Kovačević's opinion.

When it comes to the security situation in the country, generally speaking, Kovačević says it is very bad. The number of thefts has increased, violence on the streets, people are generally insecure.

-You recently had the stoning of a mosque in Srebrenica or now the burning of a church storage facility in Sarajevo. It could have been a faulty installation, thousands of reasons. But no, a political connotation is sought in everything. Let these people, the citizens of this country, look at just one fact and ask themselves - can they pay their utility bills from their salaries? Those who deal with politics can, absolutely. Let the people look at their social card, and then at the social card of politicians, everything will be clear to them.

We have an IMF transfer of around one billion KM that can only be looted at the local level, and that is why it is important for this government to achieve dominance in the local elections at any cost, explains Kovačević.

Speaking about crime and corruption that are rampant in BiH, he emphasized that the main method of robbery now is through coalitions. If the electoral threshold is raised, then there will be no coalitions, he points out, adding that the threshold should be raised to as much as the VAT.

Finally, he urged citizens to turn out to vote as massively as possible.

-There is no more talk of 'I have no one to vote for.' Even the worst party that gets over 50 votes is a better option than what we have now. In that case, only that party will be responsible for everything that happens, both good and bad.

Not voting, not going to the polls means giving your vote to someone who is in a position to circle it for themselves. Election theft is only possible if there is a low turnout of citizens at the elections. If you have to, cancel your ballot, but just go out. Do not allow someone to vote for you, Kovačević urges.

PM of Sarajevo Canton jokes there will be water when De Niro comes, but what about the citizens

Kovačević believes that neither the President of Serbia Tomislav Nikolić, nor any politician from Serbia or Croatia should interfere in BiH.

-Politicians in BiH need to take responsibility for their actions, and not mock the people with stories about burek, like in that episode of 'Nadrealisti' called 'Burek in Space'. The public must be included in meetings of politicians, and not have them meet informally in cafes. Institutions have been neglected, people sit in half-empty parliaments. You have the Prime Minister of Sarajevo Canton who jokes on Facebook that when De Niro comes to Sarajevo, there will be water. But what about the citizens, no one takes care of them, whether they have water or not, Kovačević asks.

Vučić collects points with the international community

Regarding Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić, who stated in Banja Luka that he will not interfere in the internal affairs of BiH, Kovačević, drawing a parallel with the situation Serbia found itself in when refugees from Syria arrived in that country, said that Vučić is now trying to earn points with the international community on BiH as well, just like then.

-He appears as a peacemaker, with his statements about non-interference. Postponing the referendum, if it comes to that, does not mean this story is over. BiH politicians must understand that the responsibility for everything that happens here is exclusively theirs. We have a situation where they boast that these or those foreigners are behind them. The people do not elect Russians, Serbs, Englishmen, or Turks in elections... but our politicians who sit in parliaments. And not only that, many of them sit in intelligence agencies of other countries because they have dual citizenship, Kovačević points out.