Brčko is making important progress on infrastructure development and legislation that promotes good governance and transparency, and that is to be applauded. However, this success will not be sustainable, let alone will the District maximise the opportunity that exists in its enormous budget, unless public administration reform and fighting corruption become the government’s and legislature’s top priorities, the Principal Deputy High Representative and Brčko Supervisor, Michael Scanlan, stated today.
Let’s be clear, the Brčko’s budget is not meant to be a jobs program, a tool for patronage, or a means to promote individual interests. The budget is there to serve the community as a whole – by providing the best education and healthcare facilities, convenient e-government services, and good and reliable infrastructure. This will ensure a good quality of life and an environment conducive to the growth of the private sector that will provide good-paying jobs.
The Development Strategy is a tool to help ensure focused expenditures on these outcomes and the public administration, with the requisite professional skills and accountability, should already be bringing about this promising future for the District.
To ensure this, it is imperative that there be a transparent and impartial process for selecting the staff of the Commission for Assessing Conflict of Interest and the Anti-Corruption Office. These positions need to be filled by people who are professional, committed to working for the benefit of the community, and independent of external influence. OHR will provide assistance and support to the District authorities, underscored the Supervisor.
Public administration reform and fighting corruption were the focus of the Supervisor’s discussions on Monday in his meetings with the Brčko City and Assembly officials, the Acting Head of the District Office for Prevention of Corruption and Coordination of Anti-Corruption Activities, the District Public Administration Reform Coordinator, and the Chief of Brčko Police.
