FOR WHOM ARE THE LAWS? BiH institutions are managed by 70-year-olds, receiving high salaries and benefits instead of pensions from the budget

(Patria) - State MP Šemsudin Mehmedović submitted an initiative to the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliament, obliging this house to oblige the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina and all institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina to respect and implement the laws of Bosnia and Herzegovina which stipulate that employment in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina ceases by law when an employee reaches the age of 65 or has 40 years of pensionable service, unless otherwise stipulated by a special law for certain categories of employees.

In his explanation, Mehmedović stated that Article 6 of the Law on Parliamentary Oversight stipulates that parliamentary oversight is carried out by the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina through its houses, and Article 7, Paragraph 2 of the same law stipulates that parliamentary oversight is carried out for the preventive protection against illegal actions.

Article 71 of the Law on Employment in the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina explicitly stipulates that employment in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina ceases by law when an employee reaches the age of 65 or has 40 years of pensionable service. Under the same conditions, in accordance with Article 50 of the Law on Civil Service in the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, civil servants are also pensioned off.

The Office of the Auditor General of the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina has repeatedly warned the Civil Service Agency and other state institutions that the law prohibits the extension of employment for all employees who have met the prescribed conditions for retirement.

Mehmedović points out that it is a frequent practice for suitable civil servants to be appointed to mandate positions shortly before retirement, and contrary to the law, it is interpreted that these individuals do not have to retire.

“Individuals appointed to mandates are illegally allowed to work for years after reaching the age of 65, and I cite a few characteristic cases: Milomir Amović, a member of the Concessions Commission, is 72 years old, and his mandate expired more than 10 years ago. Boško Šiljegović is 69 years old and has been in the position of Parliamentary Military Commissioner for 16 years, although the legal maximum is two five-year terms. Nikola Pejić is 71 years old, a member of the State Regulatory Commission for Electrical Energy, and his second five-year term expired four years ago,” states Mehmedović.

He reminds that the Collegium of the Secretariat of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina stated that the Law on Employment does not apply to Boško Šiljegović and that he cannot be pensioned off, and that his mandate ceases only in case of resignation or death.

“It is undisputed that only a special law can explicitly stipulate that the legal provisions on retirement do not apply to certain categories of employees, as is the case, for example, with advisors to members of the Parliament, the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who are allowed by the Law on Civil Service in the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina to work even after meeting the conditions for retirement,” the explanation states.

In some cases, the High Representative has also intervened, leading to amendments to the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2024, which allowed members of the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina to continue working in this mandate even after meeting the conditions for old-age pension.

The Law on Administration stipulates that heads appointed to mandates remain in office until a new appointment to that position, but this provision only applies to individuals who do not meet the conditions for retirement.

“Due to the evident inaction of the Administrative Inspectorate within the Ministry of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina, there are grounds for suspicion that the Budget of the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been damaged by several million KM due to the payment of undue salaries to a larger number of individuals in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as they continued to work in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina contrary to the law and after meeting the conditions for retirement,” concludes Mehmedović.

He requested that Davor Bunoza, Minister of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hrvoje Tvrtković, Auditor General of the Office of the Auditor General of the Institutions of BiH, and Emir Mehmedović, Chief Administrative Inspector of BiH, be invited to the session of the competent committee of the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliament where this initiative will be considered, in accordance with Article 11, Paragraph 2 of the Law on Parliamentary Oversight, to provide information within their authority regarding the initiative and answer questions from the submitter of the initiative, members of the competent committee, and representatives at the plenary session of the House of Representatives.