Protest in front of the NSRs building: Money thrown into a piggy bank for Dodik

(Patria) - The special session of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, where deputies are discussing the Budget Proposal for the next year, continued in Banja Luka.

Citizens gathered again in front of the NSRs building to protest the proposed law that reduces VAT revenue for Banja Luka and Bijeljina in favor of underdeveloped municipalities, i.e., local communities with fewer than 50,000 inhabitants.

The gathered citizens are throwing money into a piggy bank for the authorities in RS and the entity president, Milorad Dodik.

The mayors of Banja Luka and Bijeljina, Draško Stanivuković and Ljubiša Petrović, claim that money is being withheld from them because the opposition is in power in those cities.

A protest was also held yesterday, after which Stanivuković requested a meeting with the Prime Minister of Republika Srpska and the President of the National Assembly of RS, which did not happen, and the citizens gathered again.

"Yesterday, we asked here to talk with the Prime Minister and the President of the NSRS today, but nothing came of it. Citizens from Bijeljina started by bus to support us, but the police detained them at the highway toll booths," stated Stanivuković.

He added that "Banja Luka will not give up its demands for the controversial law to be withdrawn from the parliamentary procedure".

If the aforementioned law is adopted, Banja Luka and Bijeljina will lose six and four million KM annually over the next three years.

"We proposed that we all help those local communities in solidarity. They refuse. Well, we are not giving up ours either," said Stanivuković.

According to the explanation from the Government of RS, this law was initiated by the Association of Municipalities and Cities of RS.

Deputies of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska (NSRs) yesterday considered the Proposal of the Economic Reforms Program of Republika Srpska for the period 2025–2027, under an urgent procedure, which projected economic growth rates of 2.8 percent, 3.1 percent, and 3.3 percent for those years.