Federation Government 'pushes' Amel Kovačević towards prison!

(Patria) - The Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, at its session in Mostar yesterday, adopted a Decision on the allocation of funds from the additional dividend of BH Telecom d.d. Sarajevo, to beneficiaries from the sectors of sports and culture in the amount of almost 10 million KM. Although at first glance this decision has a humanitarian and developmental character, lawyers warn that the Government has made a serious legal oversight.

Namely, dividend funds, in this case 9,903,682.76 KM, must by law be paid exclusively to the shareholder's account, i.e., the Federation of BiH as the owner of the majority stake. Only after that can the funds be planned and redirected through budget procedures. Any direct payment from dividends outside the shareholder account constitutes a gross violation of the Law on Business Companies.

Article 195 of the Law on Business Companies of the FBiH clearly stipulates:

"Dividends shall be paid to the shareholder who was on the list of shareholders on the day the decision on dividend payment was made."

Furthermore, the Law specifies that only the General Assembly of the joint-stock company can decide that dividends will not be paid, and in that case, it must clearly determine the alternative use of profits.

Such a decision has not been made; moreover, BH Telecom has already approved the dividend payment, which obliges the Government to first pay the funds into its own account as a shareholder.

By acting in this way, the FBiH Government is putting the general director of BH Telecom, Amel Kovačević, at serious legal risk. Direct execution of the Government's decision without prior legal procedure can be treated as a criminal offense, even if the funds are redirected for the common good.

The question is whether the judicial authorities, auditors, and the Banking Agency will react to this precedent, or if the "humanitarian purpose" will once again serve as an alibi for circumventing the law.

Otherwise, the Government's Decision stipulates that these funds will be allocated to beneficiaries, with individual and final amounts. From the field of sports, funds are allocated to the following beneficiaries: Football Association of BiH 2,000,000 KM, Basketball Association of BiH and Handball Association of BiH 1,000,000 KM each, Volleyball Association of BiH 500,000 KM, and the Olympic Committee of BiH, Athletics Association of BiH, and Tennis Association of BiH 150,000 KM each. Funds in the amount of 100,000 KM each are allocated to the Karate Association of BiH, Taekwondo Association of BiH, Judo Association of BiH, Kickboxing Association of BiH, and Hockey Association of BiH, while 75,000 KM each is allocated to the Boxing Association of BiH and Cycling Association of BiH. Funds in the amount of 50,000 KM each are allocated to the Rugby Association of BiH, Water Polo Association of BiH, Shooting Association of BiH, Table Tennis Association of BiH, Skating Sports Association of BiH, Swimming Association of BiH, Triathlon and Pentathlon Association of BiH, and Gymnastics Association of BiH. For the Basketball Club "Bosna" Sarajevo, an amount of 353,682.76 KM is planned.
For the Sitting Volleyball Association of BiH and the Paralympic Committee of BiH, an amount of 75,000 KM each is planned, then an amount of 70,000 KM for the Wheelchair Basketball Association of BiH, and 15,000 KM each for the Special Olympics BiH and the Table Tennis Association of Persons with Disabilities BiH.

With this decision, funds are also allocated to the fields of culture, and the funds are allocated to the following beneficiaries: Cinematography Fund of the Federation of BiH - "Pilot Program for Co-production of Series/PMM-Project ID 2934" 300,000 KM, then "DEBLOKADA” d.o.o. Sarajevo 600,000 KM, and the National Theatre Sarajevo "Tvrtko, King of Bosnia" opera 200,000 KM and Sarajevo Music Evenings (SVEM) 20,000 KM. The decision stipulates that the Government of the Federation of BiH will determine the allocation of the remaining funds from the cultural sector in the amount of 2,180,000 KM by a separate decision.

With this decision, the Government of the Federation of BiH authorized the Prime Minister of the Federation of BiH to conclude individual contracts with the beneficiaries for the allocation, use, and justification of funds, which will regulate mutual rights and obligations.

(A.Č.Z.)