NB: Test as many citizens as possible, punish irresponsible individuals and companies, and stimulate the economy

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The Independent Bloc discussed the current situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, focusing on the pervasive crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus. We support measures related to movement bans, and it is especially important for citizens to understand the seriousness of the situation and respect all adopted measures – and most importantly, those related to the need for self-isolation.

"Likewise, every citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina must have equal access to the healthcare system. We call on healthcare institutions to conduct as many Corona tests as possible, as this will certainly help in prevention. Furthermore, we call on the Government of the Federation to treat healthcare institutions from the Una-Sana, Zenica-Doboj, Tuzla Cantons, as well as all others from other cantons, in the same way. We consider the organization of a feast with more than 200 guests by a public company, under the patronage of Prime Minister Fadil Novalić himself, whose responsibility in this case is unavoidable, to be irresponsible. We previously called for the resignations of the Minister of Health of HNK Goran Opsenica, the director of the University Clinical Hospital Mostar Ante Kvesić, and after the cluster in Konjic became a hotspot of COVID-19 in our country, Fadil Novalić must resign.

Health should be the priority, and these measures must remain priorities. We support the sanctions taken by inspections that punish those who have raised prices of food, hygiene, and medical products, which the Independent Bloc called for even before this measure was adopted.

The penalty imposed by the Market Inspection of the Republika Srpska entity, which fined a legal entity 10,000 KM for not complying with the decree on returning prices to the previous level in that BiH entity, and also fined the responsible person in that company 5,000 KM, is encouraging. We also support the work of the Federal Administration for Inspection Affairs, which in 41 operations imposed penalties exceeding 80,000 KM, but we demand that they urgently intensify their work, as hundreds of citizens daily point to this problem and publicly send and share receipts on social networks, which confirm that this problem is widespread throughout the FBiH.

We call on governments at all levels to immediately adopt measures for employers and tradesmen to mitigate the negative impact of the coronavirus on business and the overall BiH economy. The most important thing is to ensure the liquidity of companies, which can be supported through deferral of loan payments, introduction of new credit lines, and especially by activating the Development Bank of FBiH.

The state of BiH should establish a guarantee fund to support our exporters, as we have significant losses in this area, and communities that depend entirely on exports, such as Goražde, must be supported.

Entity institutions must intervene in the purchase of livestock and agricultural products, and governments should adopt new tools to intervene in a timely manner in all possible situations in the economy," the Independent Bloc announced.