Nermin Nikšić has long lost control: If the SDP continues in the direction it is going, it will end up in the abyss of 2014.

By: Amra Vrabac

People and Justice and Elmedin Konaković are asking questions in our house. This is how true SDP members would briefly and vividly describe the relations in the coalition consisting of SDP BiH with the largest electoral capacity, NIP and Our Party.

The extent to which Konaković has influence in the SDP's house was shown at the press conference on August 25, when Konaković brought his advisor from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BiH, Šejla Cocalić, to moderate a party press conference. However, in that case, there is nothing wrong with Konaković. SDA used to do that too, every time they don't have another explanation for why they don't do things differently.

When the state coalition was being formed, despite having the best result (five deputies in the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliament), the SDP depended on the wishes of Elmedin Konaković and Edin Forto, whose parties together have as many deputies as the SDP itself. Nevertheless, these two sought ministerial positions, while Nikšić had to wait for the position of Federal Prime Minister. And so it was. Konaković and Forto settled in the Council of Ministers of BiH, and the SDP received only one ministerial position, for which they nominated Zukan Helez. The SDP BiH, due to circumstances or whatever else, was left without delegates in the House of Peoples of the BiH Parliament.

The negotiations for the FBiH Government level were formally led by the SDP, and in the distribution of positions, they fared slightly better than at the state level, even though they have the most deputies among the 'trojka' parties in the House of Representatives of the FBiH Parliament. The SDP received five ministers and Nikšić as prime minister.

NIP, with seven deputies, received two ministerial positions, and Konaković also supported the inclusion of Ram Isak in the FBiH Government after NES and SBiH withdrew from negotiations, as they did not want to be part of an imposed government.

Our Party, with six deputies in the Parliament, also received two ministers in the FBiH Government. Negotiations are still ongoing regarding the distribution of institutions, agencies, and institutes, but appointments have begun.

Some SDP members blame Nikšić for the election of Vojin Mijatović as minister in the FBiH Government. They reproach Mijatović for his close ties with Milorad Dodik, and now he allegedly strictly controls processes in the FBiH Government, and even Nikšić himself, given that he is also the Deputy Prime Minister.

Mijatović was one of the most vocal proponents of the position of Director of the Indirect Taxation Authority of BiH belonging to the SDP BiH, and he spewed fire at the Movement for New Generations when they received a delegate in the House of Peoples of the BiH Parliament, believing that the SDP had been deceived.

It wasn't long before Dodik's SNSD got the position of Director of the ITA, and ZNG overnight became a desirable partner for the SDP and the rest of the 'trojka' to remove the Party for BiH from the KS Government. ZNG set its conditions to receive two ministries with one formal deputy, as well as some other positions at the FBiH level.

And the Sarajevo SDP is a story in itself. The City Committee of SDP Sarajevo, headed by Adnan Šteta, who is extremely close to Nikšić, was the biggest proponent of Nikšić continuing to lead the party until 2025, so the elections for the SDP will only be held after the local elections in 2024. Through the municipal organizations in Sarajevo, former cadres from the time of Zlatko Lagumdžija are strengthening their influence within the SDP. Lagumdžija himself has also strengthened his position, and Denis Bećirović appointed him ambassador to the UN, to the general (dis)satisfaction within the SDP. After being elected to the Presidency of BiH, Bećirović stopped attending sessions of party bodies, although Bećirović was mentioned as a possible successor to Nermin Nikšić. However, in that position, as things stand now, many actually see Zukan Helez.

Although they improved their results in the previous General Elections and have six deputies in the KS Assembly, the SDP has only four ministries in the KS Government. It was expected that they would also take over the position of prime minister, but by agreement of the 'trojka', it was again left to Our Party, which has a much weaker result in KS. Currently, Our Party has four deputies in the KS Assembly, and holds the position of prime minister and two ministers. In the future reconstruction of the KS Government, the question of Nihad Uka's position as prime minister has only recently begun to be raised, as well as that of SDP minister Haris Vranić, who is being challenged by one of the factions within the Sarajevo SDP.

The candidacy of Irfan Čengić for mayor of the Municipality of Stari Grad is a thorn in the side of a part of the SDP. However, the head of the Sarajevo SDP, Adnan Šteta, supported this candidacy. Čengić is a cadre who openly speaks about the problems within the SDP, and he believes that the Statute was violated by the decision to postpone the elections in the SDP and Nikšić's remaining in the position of president. Čengić is not in the party bodies, but he managed to secure the candidacy and support of several other parties. It is certain that on October 29, he will receive the voters' support for the mayor of Stari Grad, which is his electoral base.

What is particularly criticized about Nikšić are the personnel solutions. From the very selection of advisors to the Prime Minister of the FBiH, to appointments and positions at the federal and state levels. There are not rare examples of entire families being on the budget. Due to such an approach, dissatisfaction is growing within the party organizations, especially in Sarajevo Canton.

The insatiable appetites of individuals who, through Nikšić, Mijatović, Bećirović, or Šteta, try to secure positions, will certainly weaken the SDP. Let's remember their success in 2010 and their steep fall in 2014.

Local elections are approaching, and the SDP will clearly stick to the 'trojka's' course in KS and will again propose joint candidates. But is that such a good idea? The joint story of the 'trojka' has taken a turn. NIP initiated the recall of Srđan Mandić in Centar, Hasan Tanović lost the support of NIP and Our Party in the Municipal Council Novo Sarajevo, Ibrahim Hadžibajrić parted ways with the 'trojka' after losing deputies in the KS Assembly...

NIP and Our Party have benefited the most from the 'trojka' story, while the SDP could see a drop in votes at the very next elections. They must have been aware of this when they failed the major test called Bogić Bogićević for the mayor of Sarajevo, and for the sake of partner parties, betrayed the ideals of most social democrats. Everything after that is a story already seen, because when they managed to spend Bogićević's political capital and thereby weaken both the SDP and the entire civic bloc, it became completely clear who was truly in charge of the parade within the 'trojka'.