Attacks on Komšić cause SBB to lose members, DF gains their members from Kalesija

Written by: Ernad Metaj

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While the SBB headquarters in Sarajevo, out of love for HDZ leader Dragan Čović, pours criticism on BiH Presidency member and DF president Željko Komšić, on the ground the party continues to lose members. Due to disregard from the headquarters, in Kalesija, the vice-president of the SBB municipal organization Semir Musić and former councilor of this party Armin Hodžić have moved to DF.

- Although in 2020 we achieved the best result for SBB in Kalesija, this was not appreciated by the headquarters, and our candidates did not get an adequate opportunity for the upcoming elections. Additionally, the cantonal organization of SBB has been in disarray for years, commissioners are being appointed, and in such an atmosphere it became pointless to work and act. On the other hand, DF TK, in a short time since entering government, has shown that it is a party where people keep their promises, which I, as an education worker, felt in my salary. They do much more than is seen in the media, Hodžić told Patria.

What surprised him, he says, is the attitude of the DF president towards members from smaller communities, which is the complete opposite of what he was used to in SBB.

- We were mostly focused on local issues, and now I see that the constant attacks from SBB on Mr. Komšić are unsubstantiated. What Mr. Komšić, as well as Professor Zlatan Begić, are doing in the fight to preserve BiH has truly impressed me, says Hodžić.

Earlier, the president of the Youth Forum Emir Alić, who was also a member of the Personnel Commission and a member of the Election Staff, left SBB in Kalesija. In addition to what Hodžić mentioned, the deciding factor for him was that certain individuals from the party leadership insulted the citizens of Kalesija by calling them „rednecks“ on social media.

- I joined SBB two years ago because I believed that in Kalesija they had very high-quality staff composed of young, highly moral, skilled, and educated people. With some of them, I built a friendly relationship that I hope will last a long time. Some disappointed me, as they did many others, but that is the price of engaging in politics, which I personally paid, Alić emphasized.

While SBB in TK is constantly losing members due to the personal ambitions of certain individuals, DF is gaining momentum and more and more members from other parties are joining.

- I believe that our principled stance and work results are decisive. We have shown through the example of maternity benefits, the fight for a better status for education and all other workers, as well as by fulfilling other promises, that politics can be conducted in the interest of those we represent. On the other hand, it is increasingly difficult to deceive people with false concern for the future of BiH, behind which essentially lies the desire of some people from SBB to maintain the ethnic division in BiH because, for reasons known to them, it does not suit them for this to one day become a civic state tailored to every one of its citizens, Mahir Mešalić, a member of the DF Presidency, told Patria.