Secretary's Plan Fails: He Wanted to Control Ministry of Labour, Now He Will Be Suspended

The Government of the Federation of BiH has stopped the attempt by the General Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy in the Federation of BiH, Fehim Bekan, to completely take control of the Ministry, after which Bekan will not only have to return the illegally seized Ministry seal but will also be temporarily suspended from his position, writes the BiH news agency Patria.

On Wednesday, at a session in Mostar, the Government once again confirmed that only Stjepan Buconjić, an expert associate of the Ministry, has the authority to use the seal of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, until a new minister is appointed.

After Minister Vjekoslav Čamber resigned from the Ministry, the Government of FBiH authorized Stjepan Buconjić, an expert advisor for the system and reform of pension and disability insurance in this ministry, as the sole authorized person to manage the seal until the election of a new minister. However, this did not sit well with the General Secretary of the Ministry, Fehim Bekan, after which he illegally took the seal from the office and thus took control of the Ministry.

Bekan ignored the suspension that Buconjić imposed on him a few weeks ago. The Cantonal Prosecutor's Office in Sarajevo received a criminal complaint against Bekan on the same day!

The media have previously reported on numerous illegal actions by Bekan, which are mostly related to abuse of authority and illegal employment of relatives and friends in the Ministry or institutions directly connected to the Ministry.

Due to irregularities in his work, Bekan was dismissed from the position of General Secretary of the Ministry by the OHR as well, but he was reinstated after two years.

According to Patria's findings, Bekan also arranged for the promotion of Kenan Spahić to the position of Head of Sector, without an advertised competition, and Spahić was later appointed, also illegally, to the position of acting Assistant Minister, even though this position in the Ministry was abolished by the decision of the former minister Čamber. Spahić still receives a salary based on the coefficient applicable to an assistant minister, which has directly damaged the budget by more than tens of thousands of KM.

Patria's sources state that Bekan wanted to use the time until the appointment of a new minister to employ at least six people in the Ministry, which is why it was important for him or someone from his people to control the seal.

The Ministry of Labour and Social Policy of FBiH is one of the key ministries in the Government of FBiH, managing over 300 million KM annually.