“Fiscalization in Brcko District will be finalized this month and I commend the Brcko District Finance Directorate for its efforts. This will strengthen the rule of law, level the playing field for businesses, and ensure that as the private sector grows the new consumption levels are accurately captured for any future adjustment of the tax revenue coefficient. This is an important step in laying the foundation for a better future in Brcko, and thus reverse the prevailing sentiment that a secure and prosperous future is only possible through emigration,” stated Brcko Supervisor Michael Scanlan following his meeting with Head of Finance Directorate Mato Lucic during his latest two-day visit to Brcko.
Supervisor Scanlan continued his dialogue with representatives of Brcko District authorities and emphasized the importance of a new Law on Budget being adopted after the summer break to ensure that budgeting is not only transparent but also properly targeted and in service of enhancing security, public services and economic growth in the District.
In his meetings with representatives of political parties, PDP’s Sinisa Golic, SBB’s Ina Pamuckic-Karagic, BDP’s Admir Nurkovic, and NDP’s Radoslav Bogicevic, the Supervisor discussed the overall situation in Brcko, and conveyed to them what he had shared with political parties in his earlier visits that unity is needed to re-position Brcko as a success story. “Regrettably, for the past few years, politicians have lost sight of their duty to put public interests first,” the Supervisor highlighted as the main problem. He added that, “the greatest obligation of public officials, elected or civil servants, is to ensure the effective and efficient functioning of the District institutions in service of the people.”
He also met with the representatives of the Brcko District Public Utility Company to assess, based on his recent meetings with the relevant entity authorities and the power companies, how to improve the predictability of electricity supply to Brcko.
“For me, it is always exhilarating to meet entrepreneurs, in particular, young ones. They understand that the growth of the private sector is the only way for Brcko District to become a vibrant and sustainable community. I welcome the elevated focus on public-private cooperation to improve the business environment in the District. Living off of the 3.55 percent revenue coefficient is not a sustainable model. Thus, the need to generate quickly private sector growth and jobs”, Supervisor Scanlan stated, following his meeting with the representatives of Bimal Group, Chamber of Commerce, Business Forum and the Lux Network of Young Entrepreneurs.
At the end of his fifth visit to Brcko District this year, Supervisor Scanlan toured the location of the Brcko-Gunja bridge, with a brief visit to Gunja (Croatia), in order to see for himself the state of the bridge, which is now closed to cargo traffic: “I applaud the Brcko authorities initiative to coordinate with their counterparts in Croatia to agree on a joint approach for the quick reconstruction of the bridge, including by using Brcko’s own public funds. This is an extremely urgent project for the District and I will continue to advocate at all levels and on both sides of the river for its rapid implementation.”
