Healthcare under scrutiny: Is influence from RS and Serbia being introduced through KCUS?

By: A. Čorbo-Zećo

During the holiday season, while the public is occupied with summer vacations and political turmoil surrounding Milorad Dodik's affairs, a process is unfolding under the radar that could have far-reaching consequences for the healthcare system of the Federation of BiH, especially for the Clinical Center of the University of Sarajevo (KCUS).

As we learn from multiple sources close to healthcare and security structures, the current political structure in the Federation, with strong influence from the entity of RS (!?), is preparing to appoint Dr. Alen Pilav as acting General Director of KCUS. According to these claims, this appointment is being prepared without broad public discussion, in silence, and without prior transparency, which further increases suspicions about the real intentions.

Interestingly, Pilav recently obtained a degree in healthcare management from the Faculty of Medicine in Foča, which is known for its close ties to the authorities in RS, as well as to certain structures from Serbia. According to the information we possess, this is part of a broader plan to position him as a suitable candidate to take over one of the most important medical centers in the country.

Behind this personnel puzzle, sources claim, lies an interest in taking control of KCUS's public procurement. The company Medicom Bijeljina is particularly mentioned, which has previously appeared in documents and analyses of medical equipment procurement. According to available data, Ranko Škrbić, former Minister of Health of RS, is behind this company.

Medicom d.o.o. Bijeljina has long been a known supplier to almost all healthcare institutions in the Republika Srpska. The media have reported that this company, whose director is Ljubomir Perić, allegedly Škrbić's godson, regularly wins tenders issued by public healthcare institutions.

Now they are expanding into the Federation, and through KCUS.

An even more serious accusation is that this company is illegally importing radioactive material into BiH without records and permits. Medicom Bijeljina allegedly operates as a "daughter company" of a Serbian company, and through it, an attempt is being made to influence the Clinic for Nuclear Medicine within KCUS. In support of this, the editorial office possesses a contract worth 350,000 KM, which indicates a possible coordinated activity.




Our sources are further concerned by the role of the Belgrade Institute "Vinča", and its connection to certain agents of the Security Information Agency (BIA) of Serbia. If these allegations are confirmed, it would be direct interference in the internal affairs of BiH through the control of a strategically important healthcare institution.

Neither the Management Board of KCUS, nor the Federal Ministry of Health, nor the company Medicom Bijeljina, have commented on the allegations of importing radioactive material. We have been awaiting answers on this since November last year!?

The appointment of an acting director of KCUS should never be a technical matter. If there is even the slightest suspicion that political or security interests of another country or entity are hidden behind it, the public has the right to know. Especially when it comes to healthcare resources, nuclear materials, and hundreds of millions of marks of public money.

Let us recall, the Management Board of KCUS appointed Prof. Dr. Ismet Gavrankapetanović as the director of KCUS on December 28, 2023, but he never took office because the Federal Minister of Health, Nediljko Rimac, refused his consent several times, explaining his position by stating that Gavrankapetanović had not submitted a postgraduate diploma, but only a certificate from the Faculty of Economics that he had successfully graduated in healthcare management.

In the meantime, a new Management Board of KCUS has been appointed. Thus, on June 25, the Government of FBiH passed a Decision on the appointment of the Management Board of the University Clinical Center Sarajevo (UKCS) for a period of four years, consisting of President Benjamin Kulovac (UKCS), and members Amela Kuskunović (UKCS), Sabina Prevljak (UKCS), Damir Šapina (FBiH), Mirela Imširija (FBiH), Majda Kalamujić (KS), Anel Pindžo (KS), Izudin Kučanović (ZDK), Elvin Ćatović (BPK), and Sadat Kurtalić (USK). This decision will be supplemented with a member on behalf of SBK upon receipt of the appointment proposal from that canton.