Irfan Čengić, a delegate in the House of Peoples of the FBiH Parliament (SDP), visiting BHT1 Live, spoke about the commemoration of the Storm in Prijedor, about American sanctions for officials of the Republika Srpska, and about the work of the FBiH Parliament. As he says, a lot of time was lost while certain laws were in the drawers, and there are some that have not yet been returned to the procedure, such as the Law on Conflict of Interest.
At the very beginning of the show, there was talk of a photo of an exiled Bosniak woman from Žepa who was found at the “Storm” commemoration in Prijedor and which was shown as a photo of a Serbian refugee from Croatia. Čengić says that the largest number of people left their homes in Croatia then, trusting politicians like Dodik and Vučić.
“The best comment is that she is not a victim of the Storm, but a victim of the genocide that was committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina. For me, the Storm is a military police action, which was before the International Tribunal and has its own acquittals, we are aware that there were also whining victims, but the largest number of people left their homes trusting politicians like Dodik and Vučić. I believe that making such manifestations in Prijedor is not appropriate, and on the other hand, I feel sorry for every victim because in every action there are many innocent victims who suffer,” said Čengić.
The messages from Prijedor from the marking of the anniversary of the Storm are, he emphasized, the same as they were in 1992 and 1995. years. The people then, as he says, lost a lot by listening to Milošević.
“Today, that people could have been EU residents if they had remained part of the Republic of Croatia, they would have been much better off than if they were scattered all over the world,” he noted.
Speaking about the American blacklist and sanctions for officials from the RS, Čengić repeated that these are messages to those who undermine peace and the Dayton Peace Agreement because Dayton brought peace.
“All those who undermine the peace are labeled as disruptive factors and as problems. They are no longer a political problem, they are a security problem that can cause a war on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina that would surely spread further. I am glad that the USA is acting concretely, I am sorry is that the EU does not start acting in the same way,” he pointed out.
He also believes that sanctions are only one of the steps, and that other instruments, through the Dayton Agreement, should be used to preserve peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
A set of reform energy laws was recently adopted in the House of Peoples, the SDP delegate points out that months were lost while these laws were in the drawer.
“These laws contribute to the energy independence of every individual. This law will help to develop renewable energy sources because we will have to reduce dirty energy sources, which does not mean that we will turn them off but restructure them,” he said.
He also believes that a lot of time is wasted in the work of the Federal Parliament and notes that he does not see excessive optimism in the leadership of the Parliament to improve the intensity of work.
“Time cannot be made up for, but we can start working now, although I do not see excessive optimism in the leadership of the Parliament because the sessions are not rich in agenda and there are many laws that have not returned to the parliamentary procedure. They are too busy with some solutions that are passed on To the Government of FBiH, I hope that after the summer break we will have a more dynamic order,” Čengić believes.
Speaking about the resolution of the issue of the Law on Conflict of Interest, he said that he is not silent on this issue because he has the support of citizens and that many colleagues are afraid of how the party leadership will react to their statements and that is why they are silent on this issue as well. It is not an interesting topic for the opposition, he points out, and then they also fell silent.
“What scares me the most is that the EU Delegation is silent,” Čengić points out.
The pace of passing laws in the federal Parliament is dictated by the House of Representatives, although the House of Peoples works much better, he believes, because the sessions are shorter and the work of the House is more efficient. He praised Mr. Martinović because he quickly convenes the sessions of the House of Peoples, as soon as the House of Representatives finishes a law.
Speaking about the hundred days of work of the FBiH Government, Čengić pointed out that they did not do anything special or catastrophic. He expressed doubt that this kind of Government cannot do more.
