BHRT Property Sale Hearing Postponed, Court to Make Next Decision After Response to BiH Attorney General's Office Objection!

(Patria) - The first public hearing for the sale of BHRT properties, which was scheduled to take place today at the Municipal Court in Sarajevo, has been postponed due to the absence of potential buyers at the auction.

The judge of the Municipal Court in Sarajevo stated that the Court, after responding to the objection of the Attorney General's Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina, will decide on further steps, i.e., whether another hearing will be scheduled.

The sale of BHRT's property was ordered by the Municipal Court in Sarajevo, following a lawsuit by the EBU for a debt that, with interest, amounts to slightly over 16 million KM. According to the court expert's assessment, the value of BHRT's property (land and buildings) is around 160 million KM.

"The largest part of the property that is "going under the hammer" is registered as state property, which has been temporarily excluded from legal transactions by the decision of the High Representative. Despite this fact, the Municipal Court ordered the sale of the property through public bidding," the BHRT Management Board announced yesterday.

They emphasized that this act not only endangers state property but could also be a prelude to the disappearance of BHRT as a public broadcasting service, which covers the entire Bosnia and Herzegovina by law.

"The Management Board appeals to the judicial and state institutions to find a legal way to postpone the auction and find a solution for BHRT's debt to the EBU, thereby preventing the destruction of both state and BHRT property," stated the BHRT Management Board.

Due to unresolved financing, BHRT is unable to settle its obligation to the EBU from its own revenue, the statement said.

The Minister of Communications and Transport of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Edin Forto, stated yesterday that the Attorney General's Office of BiH will request a postponement of the scheduled sale of properties of the Radio Television of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"The fact is that the debt amounts to 16 million, and the property valuation is over 150 million. It is senseless to sell so much property for such a debt," he pointed out.

Forto also said that this is state property and that its disposal is questionable, given the ban on the disposal of state property imposed by the High Representative.

"I cannot imagine that a serious investor would come and offer a serious amount, knowing that appeals, reactions from the OHR and the Council of Ministers of BiH could follow," Forto added.

Forto stated that he will seek at the Council of Ministers to adopt a law that will resolve the debt issue through the budget in the coming years, so as not to end up in such senseless situations.

"This debt is not just BHRT's debt but the debt of all three broadcasters, and we must view it as such," emphasized Minister Forto.