Due to corruption scandal in the Border Police and rigged competition, a complaint filed against judge Sena Uzunović

By: A. Čorbo-Zećo

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Zoran Galić has left the Border Police and will now work in the State Investigation and Protection Agency, but the problems in the BiH Border Police remain and there is no end in sight. Galić is certainly responsible for a number of these problems, yet he has been rewarded with a new position!?

A group of police officers is persistent in their efforts to ensure that the Border Police finally becomes a place worthy of its name. The biggest problem is that the competition, which should have been annulled immediately after the indictment against Rejhan Raković and others was confirmed for soliciting and accepting money from candidates for admission to this police agency, has continued.

Following a series of complaints to the Prosecutor's Office of BiH, the KS Office for Combating Corruption and Quality Management, the Court of BiH, SIPA, and the BiH Border Police against several individuals, including former and current directors of the BiH Border Police, the deputy director of the BiH Border Police, members of the Cadet Admission Commission, and the president and members of the Police Officer Appeals Committee for abuse of official position and damage to the reputation of the police body, a group of police officers has also filed a complaint with the HJPC against BiH Court judge Sena Uzunović, as well as the prosecutor in this case, Bojana Jolović.

Uzunović: There were no orders

Uzunović was reported because the complainants believed that she would order director Mirko Kuprešaković to annul the competition, as Zoran Galić had not done so earlier, even though he should have.

“If not for any other reason, then for the reputation of the institution,” states the complaint submitted to the HJPC.

However, it further states that they are fully aware that the sole focus was on continuing this contaminated competition, which Samir Rizvo, president of the Police Committee, and other members did.

It was literally ordered that candidates who testified before the Prosecutor's Office of BiH that they were asked for money for employment, and that some had paid money while others had not, be removed from the list.

“On April 3rd, the Cadet Admission Commission published the decision on the final results of the candidates for the XI class of the BiH Border Police. By this decision, witnesses who testified were removed from the list of admitted candidates, who are not suspects in this procedure, only witnesses, while on the other hand, Ivica Sabljo (a member of the Commission where Raković was president), who was a suspect in this case and who pleaded guilty by agreement, remained in the BiH Border Police, after the disciplinary commission acquitted him of responsibility, even though he admitted guilt in court!?”, the complaint states.

They further claim that immediately after the indictment against Rejhan Raković was confirmed, prosecutor Jolović should have sent a proposal to judge Uzunović to order director Galić to annul the competition.

“If the prosecutor did not do it, Uzunović should have ordered it,” claims the group of employees from the BiH Border Police, and they conclude:

“By continuing this competition, the reputation of the Border Police has been completely damaged, we have completely lost the trust of the citizens, no one will testify anymore that they were asked for money for admission to the BiH Border Police, let alone that they paid money, because, learning from what has been done, it is known that they will face rejection if they do so,” the complaint emphasizes.

Furthermore, the complaint states that it is an open secret that among the candidates there are still those who paid money but remained silent about it and waited for the competition to continue.

“If you do not investigate why judge Uzunović did not order the annulment of the competition and do not correct this mistake, you will completely legalize the crime committed in this competition,” the letter addressed to the HJPC states.

Incidentally, the latest report by GRECO (Group of States against Corruption monitors the compliance of 49 member states with the Council of Europe's anti-corruption instruments) pays special attention to the fight against corruption in state police agencies, with an emphasis on the BiH Border Police and the State Investigation and Protection Agency.

During the reporting period, there were several convictions against police officers for corruption in the BiH Border Police, and several employees were dismissed. One of the biggest corruption scandals is related to the admission of 150 cadets to the BiH Border Police.

At the same time, the BiH Border Police is facing a brain drain, both due to natural attrition (retirement, death of employees) and due to leaving the service, going abroad, changing police agencies, or taking other jobs.