Systemic Legal Uncertainty in the CS: NiP's Law Brings Danger of Criminal Privatization of Public Goods!

Written by: Muamer Bandić, representative in the CS Assembly and member of the Presidency of the Party for BiH

Some people naturally know how to speak, and when they also know what they are talking about, it is a pleasure to listen to them. For others, it is better to keep their mouths shut, because as soon as they open them, they dispel all doubts about their own infantilism and general ignorance of regulations and legislative procedures.

A prime example of the latter type is the Chairman of the Assembly of the Sarajevo Canton (SKS) Elvedin Okerić, otherwise a pantomime artist of his party boss, Konaković Elmedin, the founder of the phenomenon of systemic legal uncertainty in the CS.

It seems that the godfathers from Dubai have an urgent need, so today Elvedin is talking about something he is not exactly good at. Let's say he is better at dealing with that tattered and simplified Rules of Procedure than at interpreting the public interest, because the public interest is not the interest of the party boss and his buddies from the Middle East.

So this political operator started talking about the Law on Public-Private Partnership adopted at the Ninth Working Session of the SKS, held on October 3, 2023, and called all representatives who do not use their functions as a mechanism for realizing corrupt party interests a destructive opposition.

And he is right about one thing!

They are indeed destructive when they prevent public resources from being used as a means for private deals, especially when they do not want to participate in the legalization of corruption, like Trojka's cadres who are directly placed in detention from the CS Government and public enterprises.

Carried away by political interests and intoxicated by his boss's support in distributing legal uncertainty, he also accused me and the Club of the Party for BiH, completely ignoring that the Party for BiH was not in opposition at that time, but part of the ruling coalition, and that we were again against that monstrous law.

Our stance then was that we were in the ruling coalition for the sake of citizens and the protection of the public interest, not for the sake of seats. Then, just as now, we supported legal solutions that are in the interest of citizens, not political leaders and their godfathers. Then, just as today, we fought against the abuse of public resources, corruption, and clientelism, and this very law creates fertile ground for such manipulations.

I will remind you that the CS has already had one bad experience in public-private pooling of resources in a project where the Sarajevo Canton was short by more than 200 million marks. In that adventure, the main role was played by Okerić's current party boss Elmedin Konaković, for which the CS Prosecutor's Office is conducting an investigation.

It is because of things like this that we were against this Law, because we believe that such things must not happen again!

The CS Ministry of Economy, headed by a NiP cadre, was the proposer of this Law on Public-Private Partnership, which is ideal for legal manipulations that our most honorable Kona is accustomed to carrying out and which have cost the citizens of CS several hundred million marks so far.

While they “entertain” us with their fictitious quarrels with the partner from whom they are learning the trade, Milorad Dodik, the ground for a new plunder of CS public property has already been prepared.
And where NiP leads processes, the public and the opposition remain excluded, because in their minder-model of work, far from the public eye, the “public” interest is best protected. The best example of how NiP transparently conducts processes and includes the public is the appointment of the CS Ombudsman.

In such a serious procedure, through an obscure implementation of the procedure, in which a person was appointed to protect precisely the property of the CS, Okerić denied me, as a representative who votes on the appointment at the SKS session, insight into the documents and materials on which the appointment depends, while enabling this right to persons who do not vote at the Assembly session. In this way, he put me in an unequal position within the legislative body, directly trampling on the principle of equality in the legislative process.

Now imagine how these most honest and most transparent political soul-cares would select a partner who is supposed to manage public interests tomorrow? Who would be given priority, a buddy or a serious investor?

It is clear that the selection would be made without competition and with suitable companies close to the government, where citizens would lose control over basic public services, and the godfathers would profit. Ultimately and in the long term, they would permanently lose public goods without adequate compensation.

Trojka has already heavily indebted the Sarajevo Canton, and when they indebt us to the point where it can no longer be borne, then they will introduce “private partners”, “investors”, i.e., godfathers from Dubai, into our public enterprises as saviors. And they will gradually insert them into GRAS, ViK, JP PD Butmir, and other public enterprises that have valuable assets and quality land registry extracts.

And the entire process of melting down public property will take place far from the public eye. The negotiations will be led by the CS Government, i.e., a narrow circle of people who work in common collusion and who have appointed each other to key positions. And in the end, this will be approved, through the abuse of the mechanism of majority decision-making, by the clientelistic majority in the SKS, which is maintained by buying votes, from one vote to the next.

Let's take as an example that NiP has targeted JP PD Butmir. A public enterprise with valuable assets, especially land in good locations for construction. And the American mafia would say that construction is most suitable for money laundering.

The CS Ministry of Economy (NiP) planned only 100 KM in the budget for 2025 for the development projects of this enterprise. So, nothing! And a public enterprise without any budget support is already ready to be declared a chronic loss-maker and to seek “partners” for it.

The game for sinking this enterprise has already been set on the stage of boards that mean good collusion, and we are just waiting for the first deficit for “investors” from Dubai to appear with “fresh” capital. And of course, for our most honorable and most clever Elvedin and Elmedin to announce them to all of us on TV screens as saviors and a new mega success of Trojka.

Because without that skit, the fraud would not be complete!