Half of all employed persons in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)work in the public sector, an unprecedented contrast to the European average of 15%. This overburdened BiH administrative apparatus “devours” the country’s budget. Some politicians, in addition to their enormous salaries, have started private businesses, own properties outside BiH, and drive luxury cars, while citizens boycott shopping centers as the prices of basic necessities have exceeded all limits.
Politicians enjoy all the privileges they do not deserve, at the expense of citizens and the private sector. The Center for Investigative Reporting (CIN) of BiH has been recording politicians’ assets in its database for more than a decade. They have encountered various challenges, institutional resistance, and the concealment of asset-related information.
Journalist and CIN fact-checker Jasna Fetahovic-Subasic spoke in an interview.
“CIN started working on the ‘Politicians’ Assets’ database a little over a decade ago. In addition to data, it contains their biographical details, information about their careers, and the assets they own. Today, it is a valuable source of information and verified data with over 200 names.”
The five wealthiest politicians in BiH
She says it is very difficult to determine who the five wealthiest politicians are, as they often lack transparency regarding their assets. Additionally, institutions that possess such data are not open to making them available to the public.
“I have selected five names, and I must immediately clarify that these individuals, besides being involved in politics, also own private businesses. One of the new profiles in our database is Djemal Memagic, Mayor of the Municipality of Olovo and a member of SDA. He has been the long-time mayor of Olovo. In the last elections, I believe he did not even have an opponent. However, he is also the owner of a successful company (Alma Ras), which he estimates to be worth around 70 million BAM. In addition, Mr. Memagic and his wife own several properties, and in his latest asset declaration, he proudly stated that he purchased an apartment on the Croatian coast, as well as an expensive Mercedes Maybach, which he paid around 400.000 BAM for. Based on the available data, I have singled him out as the wealthiest politician in our database.”
“I will also mention Sevlid Hurtic, the Minister of Human Rights and Refugees; Vojin Mitrovic, Minister of Economy in the Government of Republika Srpska (RS) – previously the Minister of Transport and Communications; Fahrudin Radoncic, president of SBB, former Minister of Security; and Zoran Stevanovic, longtime mayor of Zvornik and member of SNSD. Today, he is a member of the National Assembly of RS (NARS). These individuals own private businesses and possess valuable movable and immovable assets.”
For some institutions, the law on freedom of access to information does not exist
CIN journalist states that while some politicians are aware of their position and the increased public scrutiny they face compared to “ordinary people,” others believe the public should not know anything about them.
“There are institutions that do their job well and comply with the law on freedom of access to information. For example, I can submit a request to see the salaries of state-level representatives and receive that information immediately. However, if I send a request to the NARS, they first seek the representatives’ consent. We only receive information from those who agree to disclose it. The most frequent requests we submit under the law on freedom of access to information concern the salaries of public officials. From the state parliament or the Council of Ministers of BiH, we receive these details without issue. However, we had to sue the Presidency of BiH to obtain the same information, and only after the lawsuit did we receive the data.”
She adds that the Government of the Federation of BiH (FBiH)also refuses to provide such information. CIN sued them as well, and the court ruled that they must reconsider the request.
“They reconsidered it and still did not provide the data. The same issue exists with land registry records, which are supposed to be public. Some offices do not see it that way. The Republic Administration for Geodetic and Property Affairs in RS refuses to provide this data. The court ruled in our favor, but then we had to submit an appeal and send new requests. We are encouraged by the courts’ responses, but the process takes too long. If you need certain information now, what good is it to receive it in three or four years? The court’s approach is correct, but the delays are excessive.”
No one verifies politicians’ asset declarations
CIN collects data on politicians’ assets from the asset declarations they are required to submit to the Central Election Commission (CEC) of BiH.
“The problem with these declarations is that no one verifies the information politicians submit. Everything depends on their will, morals, or honesty – whether they will report real data or omit and hide something. It’s up to them. No institution checks the accuracy of the information listed in their asset declarations. We verify asset data through land registries, but their accessibility varies across different parts of BiH. That is how we collect this information,” concludes CIN journalist Jasna Fetahovic-Subasic, Forbes writes.
