Proponents of Amendments to the BiH Police Officers Act Presented False Data on Agency Staffing and Union Support

(Patria) - The Bill on Amendments to the Law on Police Officers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, proposed by MPs Nihad Omerović, Jasmin Imamović, and Predrag Kojović, has sparked debate among deputies in the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliament who oppose the urgent procedure, i.e., a debate on the urgency of the proposal.

Omerović stated that this proposal is "80 percent aligned" with the positions of the unions of three police agencies. This claim was refuted by deputy Nenad Grković (List for Justice and Order), who said that union representatives had pleaded with him that morning not to support this law.

SNSD Club leader Sanja Vulić stated that she will not support the urgent procedure or the proposal itself, as they have spoken with numerous police officers who have pointed out that the proposed solution is not good.

Deputy Šemsudin Mehmedović stated that this law would reward those who poorly planned the capacities of these agencies, and specifically questioned whether it would mean rewarding the illegal director of SIPA, Darko Ćulum, with another term.

Jasmin Emrić (NES) stated that he is confused by the data presented in the proponents' proposal that police agencies are 50 percent staffed.

"I have collected data and consider it relevant; DKPT has a staffing level of 62 percent. In SIPA, the staffing percentage is 77.4 percent. It is better for such legal solutions to be considered in the regular legislative procedure," Emrić said.

Emrić stated that a very small number of police officers are interested in continuing their service because the difference between a police officer's salary and their pension is very small.

"Some want to continue leading police agencies even after retirement," Emrić said.

Deputy Aida Baručija emphasized that since its establishment, the staffing level of police agencies has been over 60 percent.

"Not all of them will retire at the same time; it will be throughout 2026. We will not experience a collapse immediately in January. If this law is adopted, high-ranking officials will remain in their positions," Baručija said.

Zlatan Begić from DF stated that the deputies of this party will oppose both the urgent procedure and the law.

"In our opinion, for all the reasons stated, we will not be able to support this proposal," Begić said.

Deputies from the Trojka parties claim that at the beginning of the year, 500 police officers will retire, which is not true.

The SIPA Union previously announced that throughout 2026, 58 officers will retire.

Deputy Predrag Kožul (HDZ BiH) stated that they received a letter from a union today as well and believes the law should not be considered under an urgent procedure.

"I have carefully read both the old and the new proposal, and the discretionary right of the leadership to decide remains. I can say, almost insignificantly, that on behalf of the club, we are skeptical about the urgent procedure. All of us have heard requests and pleas from these police agencies and unions in the past few days due to the fear of the people who approached us. I would say this topic is not unimportant, perhaps we should address it in a calmer atmosphere," Kožul said.

After the vote, there was no required majority for either the urgent or the shortened procedure, so the law will proceed through the regular procedure.