Will convicted Josip Tomic return to the Oil Terminals?

However hard it may seem for the members of the ruling coalition (SDA, HDZ and SBB) to agree on issues that are of critical importance for BH citizens – such as the coordination mechanism, Mostar elections, and the census – when it comes to HR for the top positions at public companies, they easily resolve any dilemmas.

HDZ's Dragan Covic is known for his luck to get whatever he wants and these days he seems to have renewed his interest in the FBiH Oil Terminals. It appears that the former director Josip Tomic is to return to his previous position.

Tomic 'left his mark' by signing deadly contracts with duration of 39 years with Deltagrip, which allowed Delta to pay 3.5 KM per ton of warehoused goods, while others were paying twice as much. Previously convicted HDZ manager inflicted damage onto the terminals larger than 30 million KM. The former FBiH government had a hard time covering the loss. To save Oil Terminals from bankruptcy, the FBiH government was forced to get a loan from commercial banks three years ago so as to be able to pay out Deltagrip with 15 million USD. The court case was conducted before the Arbitrary Court in Paris.  

However, none of the aforementioned truly interests the existing political elite.

Josip Tomic was found guilty by the court in Dubrovnik on 6 June 2014 on the charge of embezzlement of some 14.000 KM and was to serve one year prison sentence.

However, Covic is not concerned about the potential damage for citizens of FBiH and their property as Federal Terminal, owned by Federal government, manage Oil Terminals in Ploce.

How come that someone who was previously indicted for economic offence could be rewarded with such a high position in a public company, we asked Rifat Fetic, the long-time president of supervisory board of Oil Terminals.

Fetic told us that was against Tomic's return yet he did not explain how he got to be appointed given that Fetic is the president of supervisory board. Every appointment requires an approval by the supervisory board. Yet, Fetic claims that not to be the case in Oil Terminals:

- The politics decided. I was against that appointment loud and clear in all sessions of the supervisory board before the new management came aboard. I explained to them that, it was a wrong professional decision but they nevertheless decided to bring him back, Fetic said yet failing to explain who brought Tomic.

Fetic also said that Tomic will step on the director's position but 'the switch has not been done yet'. Fetic, who has been the head of supervisory board of Oil Terminals for some 10 years, did not give clear answers to our question what kind of message would be sent to the citizens of BiH and if he felt defeated by the politics considering the precedent of having a person previously convicted for economic crime of 30 million KM run the company.

- There, I told you, I think that only time will tell who was right – those who brought him on or we who were against it. It is possible that he may surprise us and do something opposite of what we expect. In my opinion, people who are under investigation or are charged for something, whoever they may be including the likes of Tomic, should not be on the top positions until the case is closed, Fetic shares still not saying how come that he could not stop the charade.

Otherwise, besides the non-appealable judgement by the cantonal prosecutor's office Sarajevo, there is an investigation under way in relation to Oil Terminals and Josip Tomic.