Can SIPA raid the Border Police: How BiH is being robbed and money spent in Croatia

By Rasim BELKO

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Embezzlement of money in public service has become a common practice for many, and the legal framework in Bosnia and Herzegovina is to blame. Registering residence based on the principle of 'the further from work, the better and more profitable' has been a practice for most public officials, regardless of their position.

Both the government and security services are silent, waiting for the right opportunity to exploit such cases for specific interest-political conflicts. Ratko Kovačević, spokesperson for the Indirect Taxation Authority, felt this on his own skin. 

According to SIPA, Kovačević listed East Sarajevo as his place of residence, based on which he collected travel and separate living expenses. The question is, on what grounds is this problematic, if the law allows many to register dozens and hundreds of kilometers away from where they work.

We have already written that there are many such cases in the Border Police of BiH. While grants are being 'begged' for across Europe to modernize and strengthen the Border Police, some are exploiting legal loopholes and enjoying benefits.

Although according to BiH customs policy laws, BiH citizens cannot drive cars registered in another country without a work permit from that country, the assistant commander of the Brod Border Police unit, Elvis Zahirović, has been driving a Škoda Octavia (license plates known to the editorial office) for years, and is registered in Croatia, in the town of Gejkovac, municipality of Vojnić.

Zahirović has a Croatian identity card, issued by the Karlovac Police Administration. In all of this, the commander of the Brod unit receives travel expenses from Orašje, while working as a senior inspector in the Border Police of BiH.

Through false residence registrations, Zahirović, according to information we received from the Border Police of BiH, enjoys the benefits of two countries. He collects travel expenses from Orašje, is registered in Croatia, drives a car registered in Croatia...

The question arises as to who controls police officers who have fixed registrations in BiH but live and drive cars registered in Croatia.

Indignant border guards are writing to us that such individuals in BiH only come for the benefits provided by public service.

In a letter addressed to the Patria editorial office, they state that there are quite a few public officials in police agencies who actually live in Croatia, receive travel expenses, and pay for car registrations in Croatia.

This practice has become so common that there is no Border Police unit without at least a few such cases, where everyone knows that travel expenses are being claimed through fictitious residence registrations in their places of birth, even though they do not live in BiH at all.

The budget of Bosnia and Herzegovina has thus been damaged by more than several million convertible marks in the last ten years.

The letter also states that all those responsible for the accuracy of the data are aware and know very well where their employees live and have insight into the travel expense claims.

'Why it is allowed for laws to be abused by those paid to enforce them should be determined by the competent security services,' the border guards state.

In this case either, the responsible superiors will not be held accountable, even though they knew and did not report their employees for not living at their registered addresses in BiH.

This also constitutes a criminal offense, namely the failure to report a criminal offense.

Along the chain of command, from administrators, commanders, to chiefs, all who signed or sent and approved such travel expense claims, knowing that they were fictitious registrations, should be held accountable.

While border police officers lose their jobs over 20 euros, such assistant commanders, commanders, and chiefs have been abusing their positions for years and have illegally acquired enormous wealth.

'Sending such reports to the Internal Control of the Border Police of BiH is pointless, because dozens of commanders, chiefs, and assistant commanders receive travel expenses for fictitious addresses in BiH,' the border guards write.

It is difficult not to compare all of this with the arrest operations and cases that prosecutors in BiH pompously present through loyal media, making a spectacle out of everything.
Sarajevo police officers have been in the custody of the Central Prison for two months. According to available information, the majority of these police officers are 'guilty' of taking 10, 20, or 50 KM from colleagues. Some are 'guilty' of being treated to juice or other drinks by those colleagues.

Double standards in the BiH judiciary have become a reality and a new judicial practice. At the same time, no one dares to enter the Border Police, which is under the direct control of Dragan Čović.

Because, solely on the pages of Patria, enough grounds have been written to initiate dozens of investigations. From sinking ships, rigging jobs, 'losing' weapons, finding stolen vehicles in a border policeman's garage, to fictitious registrations.

The situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina will not and cannot improve until laws and rules apply equally to everyone. Otherwise, if those who are now oppressed awaken, a huge mess awaits us.

And the oppressed are increasing.