Institutions across Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) have been allocating money for the purchase of new vehicles at the citizens’ expense for years. Are these procurements truly necessary and justified? Certain processes raise suspicions, but there are almost no concrete investigations or accountability. A story from Brcko District.
A specialized portal that regularly analyzes public procurement procedures throughout BiH marked as suspicious the procurement of official vehicles for the needs of judicial institutions in Brcko. This procurement was flagged with a yellow flag – indicating a medium level of risk. A brief response from the Judicial Commission of the District:
“The vehicle procurement procedure was conducted in accordance with the Law on Public Procurement of BiH, and the tender documentation was publicly published on the website of the Government of Brcko District BiH and available to all bidders.”
Huge funds are allocated from the District’s budget for the procurement of official vehicles, which has also been discussed in the Assembly, but despite doubts about the justification and transparency of these procurements – concrete reactions are lacking.
“Year after year, official vehicles are procured. Whether that is justified or not – I don’t know. I asked questions, I didn’t get answers,” says Boro Ristic, SP representative in the Assembly of Brcko District BiH.
“I remember ten to fifteen years ago there was a procurement in the Government, where a vehicle was procured that, had you gone to a store to buy it, would have been cheaper,” states Uros Vojnovic, US representative in the Assembly of Brcko District BiH.
Brcko has an Office for the Fight Against Corruption, and its primary task is to receive reports of possible corrupt activities. In the past four years, a number of reports have been received related to public calls, including tenders, but…
“When it comes to that specific case – the procurement of vehicles by public institutions – not a single report has been received from the very beginning of the Office’s operation until today,” emphasizes Mirza Mesanovic, assistant director of the Office for the Fight Against Corruption of Brcko District BiH.
He adds that they will begin the process of verifying the allegations regarding the procurement of official vehicles. But the opposition remains skeptical.
“None of that will affect the work of the judiciary, because they already have no accountability to any institution, so they can do whatever they want,” believes Vojnovic.
According to these politicians, amendments to the Law on Public Procurement at the level of BiH could result in more effective measures against corruption, as the current laws, they argue, contain loopholes that permit unchecked conduct.
