SDA calls on PIC to resolve institutional functioning issues, and BiH Prosecutor's Office to initiate criminal proceedings against those responsible

(Patria) - The Presidency of the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) held a session in Sarajevo today.

You can read the 11 conclusions reached on this occasion below.

1. The SDA Presidency welcomes the activities of the Bosniak Club in the House of Peoples of the BiH Parliament, which resulted in the inclusion of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJPC) of BiH in the process of full and strict implementation of the Court of BiH's verdicts against Milorad Dodik.

We expect the HJPC to persist in its demand and, if the local court in Banja Luka continues to refuse to implement the verdict, to take disciplinary measures and dismissals within its jurisdiction.

We reiterate that the verdict of the Court of BiH clearly states that Milorad Dodik must be completely removed from political life and cannot remain the president of SNSD.

2. We welcome the joint "Declaration on Condemnation of Hate Speech, Islamophobia, and False Narratives about Bosniaks and Bosnia and Herzegovina" signed by Bosniak political and religious representatives.

The declaration is a necessary, but not sufficient, response to the campaign of lies initiated by the regime of Milorad Dodik and his international lobbyists.

We warn that the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially those headed by Bosniaks, are not doing enough to stop this dangerous narrative in time.

Instead of decisive and organized action, we are witnessing self-promotional moves by the authorities for the purpose of the election campaign. This creates a dangerous illusion of "great diplomatic victories" and "historic meetings," while the reality is completely different.

3. The SDA Presidency supports the engagement of the US administration in finding investors for the construction of the Southern Gas Interconnection, aware of the fact that the current government has done nothing for almost a year and a half since the adoption of the valid Law to realize a project of strategic importance for the FBiH, which should ensure stable and secure gas supply for the economy and citizens.

At the same time, the SDA Presidency expresses serious reservations about the proposed amendments to the Law on the Southern Gas Interconnection, which SDA deputies will present at the session of the FBiH Parliament, with the aim of improving legal solutions and creating prerequisites for the successful realization of the Southern Interconnection project.

4. SDA will submit a proposal for the Law on Electoral Units on an urgent basis, with the aim of the Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina fulfilling its legal obligation and aligning the number of mandates with the number of registered voters in the electoral units.

This aims to correct the existing imbalance, ensure fairer representation, and strengthen the democratic legitimacy of the electoral process, so that the value of each vote is more equal.

5. We condemn the blockades in the work of the House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which have been carried out by SNSD for a long time.

Denying a quorum for work on issues that are in accordance with the Constitution and Rules of Procedure and as such are mandatory subjects of work represents a clear anti-Dayton activity.

This has prevented the adoption of a series of decisions on numerous important issues that are in the interest of citizens, such as SDA's Election Law on the introduction of modern technologies for this year's elections, the abolition of excise taxes to reduce fuel prices, laws on the European path, etc.

We call on the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) to finally get involved and help resolve this serious problem in the functioning of state institutions.

We ask the BiH Prosecutor's Office to initiate criminal proceedings against those responsible, as it is clearly an abuse of official position.

6. The SDA Presidency once again warns that any solution to the issue of state property that is not in accordance with the Constitution and decisions of the Constitutional Court of BiH is unacceptable.

According to the BiH Constitution, the owner of state property is exclusively the state and as such must be registered in land registries, cadastres, and other public records.

The issue of management, use, and disposal of state property can only be regulated by a Law to be passed by the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Until the adoption of the aforementioned Law, and in order not to block economic development, it is necessary to reactivate the commission at the state level that would carry out individual exceptions to the temporary ban on the disposal of state property.

7. We welcome the efforts of international representatives in BiH and the Central Election Commission to enable the application of modern technologies and ensure the full transparency of the upcoming General Elections.

Obstructions in the procurement of equipment and the adoption of amendments to the law on the application of new technologies proposed by SDA are clearly orchestrated by the ruling parties, who want to continue manipulating the electoral will of the citizens.

8. We demand that the ruling coalition at the state level urgently resolve the financial problems of the public RTV system.

If the Trojka and its coalition partners are unable to reach an agreement at the state level, they are obliged to find a solution through the FBiH Government so that BHRT does not collapse.

Instead of directing budget funds to the regime-controlled FTV, which has been turned into a party mouthpiece for SDP and Trojka, and HDZ's Islamophobic RTV "Herceg Bosne," they are obliged to help find a temporary solution and secure funds for BHRT's functioning until it is included in the state budget.

Given that they have indebted the FBiH by 2.5 billion this year alone, they can also secure around 30 million for BHRT through a budget rebalance.

We also warn the OHR that it must get involved in solving this problem. If they did so in the "Viaduct" case, then there are many more reasons to do so in the case of BHRT.

9. The indifferent attitude of the Council of Ministers of BiH and the Government of FBiH towards the closure of the Coke Plant in Lukavac and the announcements of the closure of the New Ironworks in Zenica raise suspicions of complicity in a project aimed at leaving the Federation, or Bosnia and Herzegovina, without strategic steel production.

We warn that the eventual closure of the New Ironworks Zenica would have far-reaching consequences for the economy and society as a whole. More than 11,000 jobs would be endangered, while negative effects would spill over to dozens of related companies and entire sectors of the economy.

The cessation of production would also mean the loss of billions of convertible marks in turnover, a decline in industrial production, a reduction in exports, and a further weakening of the economic stability of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

SDA insists on the introduction of temporary protective measures on steel imports, appropriate subsidizing of endangered production activities, and will initiate the holding of thematic sessions of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH and the FBiH Parliament to consider models for resolving these problems.

10. We warn that the FBiH Government and the management of BH Telecom must not make any decisions about the purchase of the private company Telemach until a special session of the House of Representatives of the FBiH Parliament is held.

We expect the session to be scheduled as soon as possible, especially after information has appeared in the public about BH Telecom's enormous borrowing, with the intention of overpaying for a private company with questionable ownership and business prospects.

BH Telecom is not the private property of the management, nor the political spoils of the current government, but a company of strategic interest for the FBiH.

Citizens and deputies must know exactly what is being bought, at what price, under what conditions, and what consequences such a deal will have on the future operations of BH Telecom.

Such decisions cannot be made behind closed doors, but exclusively through institutions and with full accountability to the public.

11. The SDA Presidency received the news with concern that the Municipal Court in Sarajevo, after a multi-year process following Sebija Izetbegović's lawsuit, in which dozens of witnesses were heard and a large number of evidence was presented, declared itself incompetent at the moment when it had to issue a verdict which, judging by the course of the proceedings, should have been positive.

This is a legal precedent that unfortunately sets legal uncertainty as a standard. We expect the competent authorities to review such a decision based on law and their supervisory obligation.

It is particularly indicative that such a decision was made on the same day that the indictment of the Cantonal Prosecutor's Office against Muhamed Ajanović, former dean of the Faculty of Dentistry, was confirmed, who admitted that, as president of the UNSA ad hoc commission, he proposed a political and illegal decision to annul the master's degrees to the Senate, which also resulted in the annulment of other academic titles and qualifications.