Parliamentarians Criticize Council of Ministers' Performance

During the discussion on the Information regarding the consequences of the natural disaster, Mirsad Mešić, an SDP MP, praised members of the BiH Armed Forces but noted that FTV and BHT were inactive during the disaster.

- What concerns me is that the BiH Armed Forces have a trivial problem with helicopters, as I learned that helicopters cannot fly because they are missing brake pads or some part. I received a list of the things missing to make the helicopters operational. According to pilots' statements, if we had all our helicopters available, we would not need international assistance - said Mešić. He proposed a conclusion tasking the Council of Ministers to allocate funds for the training of helicopter forces.

Mladen Bosić, president and MP of SDS, stated that he hopes everyone is aware of the scale of the catastrophe and that he can say that institutions have failed the test.

- Please don't tell me this is about scoring political points. The government will always say if something is not done correctly that it's about scoring political points. If we say that the Council of Ministers did not meet for the first three days of the disaster. Your conclusions are from the session of May 21 and 22, so what were you doing before, where are your conclusions. So don't claim you were working. This is a catastrophe, and I cannot believe that anyone here thinks that the institutions, especially the Council of Ministers, did everything correctly - said Bosić, adding that people are like ants compared to the force that has occurred.

- We are discussing what should have been done before the floods, what should have been done during, and what needs to be done after. Every year, some disaster befalls us. And we don't have a system in the whole of BiH that should react in such situations - added Bosić.

He announced that he will also seek the formation of an investigative committee to determine who is responsible for the embankments and the lack of coordination.

- Philosophical discussions about whose jurisdiction it is are a direct example of the moral failure of this society. This should not be just a session where the Council of Ministers' report is presented - added Bosić, proposing conclusions that the executive authority of the Council of Ministers should reallocate the budget, as one daily allowance is not enough.

- The Council of Ministers must review the budget and allocate at least one hundred million KM - added Bosić, specifying that 540 thousand should be returned to SDS, and they will use these funds for humanitarian purposes, reported the reporter of the BiH news agency Patria.

Drago Kalabić, SNSD MP, stated that there are no innocent parties, and this problem has not existed since yesterday, but for 20 years.

- Those who divided this country cannot now ask what happened to the embankments. We will state everything in the reports. There are no saints here, nor those who came from monasteries - said Kalabić.

Milorad Živković stated that time should not be wasted discussing individual cases.

- Let's discuss what we can do for these people who elected us. Let the institutions, if they exist, deal with it. Let's have conclusions from the Council of Ministers, and let them say if they can fulfill them - said Živković.

Beriz Belkić, SBiH MP, stated that they cannot boast of having reacted quickly.

- The real question is what can be done now, and I hope that the institutions will provide precise data so we can face the problems. I hope a reconstruction project will be made, but what to do now. With what will we develop this country. A decision on adopting initiatives should be made. All funds arising from these conclusions should be directed in this direction. We can adopt laws related to company operations, primarily I mean preventing money laundering - said Belkić, adding that the budget rebalance should also be supported when it is done realistically.

The discussion was marked by exchanges between MPs from RS, with Slavko Jovičić, Aleksandra Pandurević, Darko Babalj, Milica Marković, and others being the most vocal.

After a half-hour break requested by SBB, the replications of SDS and SNSD MPs continued. Denis Bećirović from SDP said that unity and solidarity should be expressed today.

- Now we must set aside all ideological and party discussions. I also propose that replications be abolished and that we vote on all conclusions immediately after the discussion - said Bećirović, adding that an important question at this moment is what about the framework law on rescue that they have.

- I publicly ask who is responsible that a state of natural disaster has not been declared in BiH until this moment. And I assume why, but we don't have a precise answer as to the reasons, why someone prevented it. Finally, what is the purpose of this session, this is a preliminary information from the Council of Ministers, and we can only propose conclusions - said Bećirović.

He continued by proposing as many as 11 conclusions, including expressing gratitude to all who saved lives during the floods.

- The House of Representatives of BiH calls on all levels of government for budget rebalances and the EU to show additional understanding for BiH and to treat BiH as a candidate country in the process of providing assistance. The House of Representatives demands that the Council of Ministers prepare information on inadequate price increases within 30 days. The House of Representatives should especially praise the BiH Armed Forces and call on all levels of government to pay special attention to the procurement of pumps, dehumidifiers, medicines, chemicals, and transportation during the accommodation of the population - said Bećirović.

Božo Ljubić also gave a very sharp assessment to his colleagues, stating that it is clear that there is no system in this country.

- BiH does not have a state-level Public Health Institute, and no one can tell me that this is not important. The WHO has a system for monitoring the epidemiological situation, and we...all conclusions should be considered in one way or another. I believe we should proceed with a budget rebalance, even though it is not in our legislation. A fund should be created to enable flooded areas to continue working - said Ljubić.

Šefik Džaferović stated that much of what was heard today was based on discussion, not replication.

- What we are going through is something we will deal with for a long time. I am sorry, Mr. Bevanda, that I did not see you immediately on May 14. We had a session then. When the flood occurred in Germany, Merkel was immediately in boots with the people, I am sorry that I did not see you. I know that the Council of Ministers' responsibilities are less than in Serbia or Germany, but you are the Council of Ministers of BiH and you also have coordination responsibilities. We needed you to be fully operational on May 15. You did not respond adequately to the challenges of the time and the problems. That is my assessment - said Džaferović.

Džaferović stated that the Council of Ministers was dormant, and now he cannot even list everything that the Council of Ministers needs to do, and that a state of natural disaster should have been declared throughout BiH.

- This country will have to do everything to return to its original state. The state will have to do that. I don't know how much money we will need, but I have looked at budgets, and there are many items that direct funds to specific categories. If we were to redirect them, we could find half a billion KM - said Džaferović.

Vjekoslav Bevanda responded to Džaferović's question as to why a state of natural disaster and a day of mourning were not declared.

- A state of natural disaster was not declared because, although announced, a request for its declaration never reached the Council of Ministers, and that's the end of the story. A day of mourning was not declared because I cannot declare it myself. From all of this, Ljubić and I did not do our job, so I will say that I am not ashamed that, using my connections, I brought four helicopters from Croatia and Slovenia. It is amoral that while everything was endangered, I would take a helicopter to fly while children were waiting on roofs to be rescued, and I said this already on May 15 - said Bevanda.

He stated that some politicians used helicopters to transport TV crews, filming their visits to flooded areas.