The Assembly of the Canton of Sarajevo adopted the Decision on acceptance of debt under the Loan Agreement between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for the “Ilidža – Hrasnica Tramway” project.
CS Finance Minister Emir Dedović stated that the Canton is borrowing EUR 25,000,000 for 15 years with a repayment period and a three-year grace period.
He claims that the implementation of one of the most important projects that has been advocated for a long time could soon begin, and that this assignment is the last step when it comes to financial resources.
The representative of the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) Haris Zahiragić resented the new charge, pointing out that it is not known how much money was spent on the reconstruction of the existing railway line.
He claims that the reconstruction process should be transparent and that he cannot get information from the minister about which company is performing the work, or who hired the contractors and subcontractors.
He also emphasized that money could be found in the CS budget for the construction of a new railway, because last year 20 million BAM was given in interest for loans and that 200 million BAM was transferred from last year to the current year.
The representative of the Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Muamer Bandić, said that certain data between the Ministry and the contractor can be protected if the CS has authorized the Ministry, but Zahiragić pointed out that the CS Assembly did not approve something like that.
The representative of the Social Democratic Party, Samir Avdić, pointed out that it is a historical project, and that politicization should be stopped, because the project will facilitate the movement of many people.
SDA representative Faruk Kapidžić said that the plan for the construction of the Ildža – Hrasnica railway line was drawn up due to the transportation of workers to factories, which no longer exist.
He also added that a plan has been drawn up for the construction of the Nedžarići-Dobrinja railway, where five times more people live today, and that the railway would be built four times faster due to its length.
Kapidžić claims that the government in CS is not looking at the profitability of the project, because it plans to move the draw at the end of the railway in Hrasnica so that the land on which the facility is now located can be sold for the construction of buildings.
