Pećanac on coalition with Budimir and Dolić: No one is guilty before conviction!

The current President of the Federation of BiH, Živko Budimir, and his Party of Justice and Trust (SPP) will enter the elections for the state Parliament in a coalition with Nermin Pećanac's Social Democratic Union, and the Democratic National Community (DNZ) of Rifat Dolić, reports the BiH news agency Patria (NAP). The coalition has been registered with the Central Election Commission.

Pećanac, the current Minister of Internal Affairs of Sarajevo Canton, told the Patria agency that he does not see a problem with the SDU being in a coalition with a party led by a person accused of corruption.

- As long as it is not proven that Budimir is guilty, there is no reason for us not to be in a coalition. You see, Goran Zubac is also accused, and he remained the director of SIPA. I advocate for the consolidation of political factors, and we are entering the elections together with clear ambitions to become a parliamentary force at the state level – says Pećanac.

Budimir is accused of illegal pardons and corruption, and the case is in the Cantonal Prosecutor's Office in Sarajevo, while a trial for illegal possession of weapons is ongoing.

- What if he is convicted? That is a hypothetical question, and I will not answer it. He is our candidate for the Croat member of the Presidency of BiH. Next week, we will have a coalition meeting and agree on how other candidacies will be distributed – says Pećanac.

It is not excluded, he says, that they will also have a candidate for the Bosniak member of the Presidency of BiH.

- We will see. I have my candidate, for whom I voted last time as well, but I would not talk about it publicly – says Pećanac. The Pensioners' Party and the Liberal Democratic Party are also in the same coalition at the cantonal level.