Setting Up Billboards and Posters: Inspection Monitors the Situation on the Ground

Regarding the current campaign for the Local Elections, which will be held on October 2, 2016, the Cantonal Administration for Inspection Affairs of the Sarajevo Canton expects that political entities participating in these elections will, in a legally prescribed manner, inform voters and the public about their programs and candidates. From the perspective of the jurisdiction of the Inspectorate for Urban-Construction, Environmental, and Communal Inspection of the CAIA, it is particularly important that political entities consistently apply legal regulations and place promotional material only in areas designated for posting and advertising, reports the Bosnian news agency Patria.

In this regard, we call on all political entities and their supporters to refrain from improperly placing posters, banners, free-standing structures, and billboards with images of candidates, pre-election slogans, and messages, as well as to refrain from devastating public spaces and surfaces by writing graffiti and inscriptions, and from soiling public surfaces by scattering, throwing, or destroying promotional material. We especially emphasize the strict legal prohibitions on posting on public lighting poles and contact networks, public transport stops, and the prohibition of placing advertising billboards and sticking posters on trees, park equipment, and buildings.

Since comprehensive action requires the engagement of all competent entities, the Cantonal Administration for Inspection Affairs has already organized a meeting with representatives of the communal warden services of the cantonal public utility companies "PARK" and "RAD", who have been monitoring compliance with legal provisions on the ground since the first day of the election campaign. Communal wardens work in two shifts, and they submit all recorded violations to the cantonal communal inspection for appropriate action. At the same time, additional engagement of municipal inspections (urban-construction/communal/road) has been requested to ensure that illegal actions within the jurisdiction of these bodies are timely prevented and sanctioned.

We expect political entities to demonstrate socio-political responsibility towards the state and the local community through lawful conduct and, by this example, convince voters of the truthfulness of the political ideas they represent. This particularly applies to programmatic commitments in the areas of environmental protection, protection and maintenance of public spaces and surfaces, communal activities, and communal cleanliness.

Furthermore, we timely warn that all recorded violations will be sanctioned in the manner prescribed by law, i.e., by issuing decisions on the removal of identified irregularities, as well as misdemeanor orders. Depending on the type of violation and the substantive regulation defining it, prescribed fines range up to 6,000.00 BAM for legal entities, up to 1,000.00 BAM for the responsible person in a legal entity, and up to 700.00 BAM for a natural person. In addition, for failure to comply with an inspector's decision, the Law prescribes fines in the amount of up to 20,000.00 BAM for a legal entity, and up to 2,000.00 BAM for the responsible person in a legal entity.