SBiH Councillors to Mayor Avdić: Sarajevo is not NiP's branch, City budget is not a private cash register

(Patria) - The Club of Councillors of the Party for BiH (SBiH) in the Sarajevo City Council told Mayor Samir Avdić that the municipality of Ilidža is not part of the City of Sarajevo and that he should stop acting as if the budget belongs to the People and Justice (NiP) party.

"Mayor Avdić, Sarajevo is not NiP's branch. The City budget is not a private cash register. Respect the law, stick to your competencies, and stop acting as if Ilidža is under the jurisdiction of the City of Sarajevo just because its mayor is from your party - NiP", announced the SBiH Club of Councillors.

This reaction from the SBiH Club of Councillors followed media reports about a meeting between Mayor Avdić (NiP) and the Mayor of Ilidža, Nermin Muzur (NiP), where they "discussed joint projects and future plans important for the development of Ilidža and the entire Sarajevo".

SBiH sharply told Mayor Avdić to stop misleading the public and to finally familiarize himself with his legal powers.

"The municipality of Ilidža does not belong to the City of Sarajevo, nor does the mayor have any right to finance its projects. This is misleading and deliberately deceiving the residents of the municipality of Ilidža.

According to the Law on the City of Sarajevo and the Statute of the City, Sarajevo consists of four city municipalities: Stari Grad, Centar, Novo Sarajevo, and Novi Grad. Ilidža is not among them, and no party coordination can change that fact.

Therefore, the SBiH Club of Councillors will, at the City Council session scheduled for October 29, 2025, seek clear answers from the mayor: Who is the real initiator of the meeting with Mayor Muzur? What kind of 'joint projects' are being discussed?

And, most importantly, from whose budget are these projects planned to be financed - from the city budget that belongs to the citizens of Sarajevo or from NiP's party funds?

Instead of solving the accumulated problems of the City of Sarajevo, Mayor Avdić seems to be engaged in party marketing and an attempt to use public funds for political networking within NiP.

We remind that the Municipality of Ilidža, according to the official report on the semi-annual budget execution for 2025, has not realized even 40% of its planned funds, although the Sarajevo Canton has already allocated between 15 and 20 million KM for infrastructure projects - an amount that other municipalities in the Canton can only dream of.

While the mayor is taking photos with the mayor of a municipality that has no institutional connection to the City, Sarajevo is sinking into neglect.

The Miljacka riverbed has been neglected for years, the Otoka Olympic Pool is leaking and accumulating debts to public companies, and city companies are waiting for basic funds to operate. These are the real problems of the citizens of Sarajevo, not party meetings in Ilidža.

Of course, the SBiH Club would support any initiative for the Municipality of Ilidža to become an integral part of the City of Sarajevo - but this must be a legal and institutional decision, not a political performance by two party colleagues", the statement from the SBiH Club of Councillors added.