Mandilović: Those are not my answers – Fena: We received a letter with a seal and the minister's signature

The resigning Federal Minister of Labour and Social Policy, prim. dr Milan Mandilović, is obliged to inform the public that the answers in an interview published in certain media, which refers to comments on the new Labour Law, are not answers that he personally prepared, announced Mandilović's cabinet, reports the Patria news agency.  

Namely, the Sector for Labour and Employment of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Policy directly worked on the drafting and preparation of the new Labour Law, and they defined certain aspects of the new Law as expert persons who were directly involved in the drafting process itself.

We have an obligation to emphasise that the request sent to the Ministry by the Federal News Agency was not sent as a request for an interview directly with the minister, but exclusively as a request for an expert interpretation of certain provisions of the new Labour Law, to which answers were given and could only be given by the expert service of the Ministry.

Therefore, we note that the views expressed in the said interview do not reflect the views of Minister Mandilović, and that he is of the opinion that the Law should not have been sent into parliamentary procedure without the agreement of all social partners who participated in the drafting of the Law. The minister has not and would never participate in commenting on or analysing any regulation that was proposed or adopted without the prior consent of all interested parties to which it relates.

The answers submitted to the Federal News Agency are exclusively the answers of the expert service of the Ministry, which also participated in the negotiations and drafting of the Labour Law, states the denial.

Regarding this case, the Federal News Agency also issued a statement, which we transmit in full.

Regarding the interview with the Minister of Labour and Social Policy in the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, dr. Milan Mandilović, which Fena broadcast and then withdrew from its service after a telephone intervention by Minister Mandilović in which he disputed the authenticity of the interview, we are obliged to inform the public of the following:

1. A Fena journalist requested the minister's answers from the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy of the FBiH on several questions regarding the publication of the Labour Law of the Federation of BiH in the Official Gazette.

2. The Fena journalist previously arranged the method of conducting the interview by telephone with the officials of Minister Mandilović's Cabinet, sent the questions from her official email address, and received verbal notification that she would receive Minister Mandilović's answers in written form.

3. The answer in pdf format arrived at the official address of Fena from the official address of the Ministry. The answer was sent on official memorandum, the answer was protocolised, sealed, and contains the minister's signature, which you can verify in the attachment we are submitting to you.

4. Given the five confirmations of authenticity (official email address, memorandum, protocol, signature and seal), Fena had no reason to doubt the authenticity nor do we question the veracity of dr. Mandilović's claims, states the Fena statement.