Robbery in the Federation: Public companies are "falling" silently one by one, party pockets are being filled

Surprisingly sharply, SBB President Fahrudin Radončić reacted today to the announcement that 39.9 percent of the state-owned block of shares of FDS will be sold on September 1st through the Sarajevo Stock Exchange at an extraordinary auction for 42.7 million KM.

He publicly called on Prime Minister Fadil Novalić and the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (his coalition partners SDA and HDZ BiH), and his Minister of Energy and Mining Nermin Džindić to postpone this sale indefinitely, because the "robbery of public companies must be stopped", writes the Patria News Agency.

The decision on the urgent sale of public companies with majority state capital was made by Novalić's government back in June 2015.

At that time, companies were divided into three categories: strategic, companies with development difficulties, and companies prepared for privatization.

Ministers from the Democratic Front, who submitted irrevocable resignations, did not attend that session on June 18, 2015, so ministers from the two parties, SDA and HDZ BiH, decided to sell: Aluminij Mostar, ArcelorMittal Zenica, Bosnalijek, Energoinvest Sarajevo, Energoinvest Comet d.d. Sarajevo, Energopetrol d.d. Sarajevo, Fabrika duhana Sarajevo, and Sarajevo-Osiguranje, in which the total state capital exceeds 700 million KM, and perhaps even more, considering that false data on financial operations were presented in accounting.

So far, two attempts to sell Sarajevo-Osiguranje, in which the state has a 45.49 percent stake, have failed through the stock exchange. Given the drastic reduction in share prices on the stock exchange, it is clear even to economic laymen that this is a well-thought-out plan to sell the only domestic insurance company for next to nothing (a robbery).

What is also indicative is the fact that the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as one of the largest shareholders in Sarajevo-Osiguranje, does not insure its property with its own insurance company, but with foreign ones.

This fact also leaves room for open suspicion that Novalić's government (then only SDA and HDZ BiH), which made the privatization decisions, aims only to sell off companies in which it is the majority owner with pre-arranged partners (domestic and foreign).

Given that everyone here already knows that everything is being done according to the "IMT" (ima li tu mene - is there anything for me) tactic, there is no doubt that those who made such a decision have benefited from all privatizations.

The information that the values of state capital were falsely presented in accounting books is also concerning, all in order to blind the public with stories that these are unprofitable companies that are incurring losses.

Thus, the value of Energopetrol was deliberately reduced to only 15.1 million KM, FDS to 51.1 million KM, and Aluminij to only 83.6 million KM...

Novalić and the ministers have persistently justified the well-thought-out plan to sell companies with a majority stake of state capital for next to nothing by the demands of the IMF and the Reform Agenda. In fact, the right word would be they are scaring, not justifying.

The IMF loan of one billion KM that BiH received is not a gift. Future generations will "bloodily" repay it, without even knowing (just as we don't know now) how it will be spent and what the precise conditions of this international financial institution are.

Everything is being done non-transparently, what the demands of the international community are is being hidden from the public, details from the Reform Agenda are surfacing daily bit by bit, the financial operations of public companies are being misrepresented, new levies are being introduced...

And all important decisions, on appointments and the sale of state companies, are most often made in urgent telephone sessions!

Thousands of people work in the companies that the Government has designated for urgent privatization. What will happen to them when Sarajevo-Osiguranje, FDS, Energopetrol are sold off to God knows whom? Will they end up on the street? Is there a plan for such a scenario, or are they just selling to grab something without thinking about the people who work there? Will the Government stipulate that those who "buy" state companies are not allowed to lay off workers?

Where will the money from the sale of companies end up? Novalić says into the budget to pay pensions regularly. Who would have thought miracles could happen. Let's move past this statement of his, because a prime minister who tells citizens to spend lavishly is extremely unserious, so the talk about filling the budget can be seen as a tasteless joke from his arsenal.

There is no valid analysis in the sale of public companies, no strategy, they just suddenly appear on the stock exchange to sell shares, except for the "IMT" or "I scratch your back, you scratch mine"... Everything is done extremely non-transparently, and no one is held accountable (the question is whether they ever will be) for the finalization of the robbery of state companies.

The situation is concerning that the sale is taking place at a time when the Federal Parliament, which should discuss it as the highest legislative body, is not in session. Companies are falling one by one in silence. Numerous facilities, the property of these companies outside BiH, in neighboring Croatia and Serbia, worth tens of millions of marks, are also falling.

Many in BiH wish for the scenario from Serbia. In July 2013, the prosecution of the neighboring country initiated criminal charges against three former ministers, 11 former public company directors, one current public company director, and several judges and prosecutors.

In the process of resolving cases of 24 disputed privatizations in Serbia, charges were filed against 115 people, and the total material damage caused to the state budget according to these charges amounted to 70 million euros.

Can we also watch this action movie in this suffering country?

It should not be surprising when Novalić's government and his advisors, i.e., SDA and HDZ BiH, sell companies they have classified as "urgent privatization" to "agreed partners" and then smoothly move on without much fanfare to the second category - companies with business difficulties, among which are Agrokomerc (part already sold for next to nothing for 2.2 million KM), Fabrika duhana Mostar, IP Krivaja, Konfekcija Borac Travnik, Feroelektro, and then rush to strategic enterprises such as BH-Gas, BH Telecom, Igman d.d. Konjic, JP Autoceste FBiH, JP BH Pošta, Elektroprivreda BiH, JP Elektroprivreda HZHB Mostar, Union banka Sarajevo....

They have two years left until the end of their term. In the past two years, they have set us back at least ten. Where will we end up with them in 2018? Back in 1996, at the beginning when everything was burned down, destroyed, and plundered.