Radončić: The obligation to form the FBiH Government rests on Čović and Izetbegović

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - Fahrudin Radončić, Fahrudin Radončić, president of SBB, said at today's press conference that 2021 must be a year of infrastructure works. He also touched upon the coronavirus pandemic, emphasizing the complete lack of reaction from the state level of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"We have something called a health conference, which consists of Minister Gudeljević and two entity health ministers. She has never met, at least not that I know of. So it's not surprising that BiH has more than 4,000 deaths due to COVID, which is double the average of our neighbors and other European countries. We have a situation where no one is dealing with why so many people are dying," Radončić asked.

He added that it is unknown when vaccines will arrive in BiH.

Radončić said that the fight against corruption remains one of SBB's most important programmatic points.

It is very important, he emphasized, that the BiH Prosecutor's Office, which is the most difficult, has launched a number of investigations and prosecuted a significant number of individuals in the most important positions in the country.

"Whether it is the Minister of Security, the Director of the Intelligence Service, or former ministers, it should be said that the Prosecutor's Office should be supported in its fight against systemic corruption and especially against abuses by those who were in charge of budget funds, or human resources, whom they misused for their own purposes to prevent investigations against themselves. I think, on the other hand, tendencies are noticeable; if Mr. Bakir Izetbegović can legitimately, as the president of a party, criticize the BiH Prosecutor's Office, I think I am also allowed to notice some tendencies regarding the BiH Court, that there, with full respect for the presumption of innocence, there was a milder criterion than what I believe should have been."

Regarding the formation of the Federal government, Radončić said that he expects some indications from Čović and Izetbegović because they are strategic partners.

"The responsibility to implement the election results from 2018 at the federal level rests on them. SBB is a hostage to their lack of agreement, and HDZ, SDA, and the Democratic Front have more than enough votes to form a new Federal government and fulfill their constitutional obligation," he said.

The president of SBB also spoke about the elections in Mostar, stating that he considers it necessary and truly hopes that our coalition will provide the mayor of Mostar.

"The elections in Mostar showed the situation in a vivid way; for me, the most important thing is that they were held and that whoever becomes mayor there, whether Bosniak, Croat, or someone else, or a third party, we will have a peaceful situation and an atmosphere where people will work for the benefit of the citizens."

He warned of the major problems caused by the migrant crisis.

"I must say that when I resigned, the previous approach, which unfortunately continued, was that it was not treated as a security issue and adequate steps were not taken. Chronologically, the mass arrival of illegal migrants began with the government in which SDS was and the responsible minister was Mr. Mektić. It's not that this government didn't find an adequate response to prevent and preempt the crisis, but it was precisely this government, in which SDA was with Mektić, I repeat, and SDS, that established an unacceptable practice of reducing the issue of illegal migration solely to Bosniak responsibility.

If we had started deporting illegal migrants in March when I requested it, we would not have the situation we have today in the Una-Sana Canton, we would not have this ping-pong with these unfortunate people. And again, it all ends with the responsibility of Bosniaks and Bosniak politics, which is unacceptable," Radončić emphasized.

He pointed out that Cikotić was arrogant enough to call his assessments a sexy and fancy approach.

"And today we see what the sexy and fancy approach he is implementing regarding migrants means. Therefore, I expect the Council of Ministers and he as the Minister of Security, and Bosniak politics together with SNSD and HDZ, I mean SDA as well, to urgently return to the program of hiring 1,400 border police officers, continue the action I implemented for municipalities or our institutions to find part of their budget reserves and invest money there, and to start legal deportations in order to discourage the arrival of future migrants," Radončić stressed.