The Sarajevo Canton Assembly is considering a proposal for a decision on accepting the resignation of Prime Minister Nihad Uk and dismissing the CS Government, after Uk said that function is less important than responsibility and that the government must send a clear message that it listens to citizens.
Explaining his decision, Uk said that in politics there is a moment when function must be less important than responsibility.
“When I was choosing between staying in office and the need to send a clear message that the government must listen to the citizens, my choice was clear and that’s why I resigned,” said Uk.
He added that he believes that societies progress when institutions take responsibility and when the government shows a willingness to hear the voice of citizens, especially those who, as he stated, want a fairer, safer and more orderly society.
Uk recalled the projects implemented during his mandate, citing the improvement of public transport, education and the health system, support for the economy and socially vulnerable categories, as well as investments in the police and infrastructure projects significant for Sarajevo and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He pointed out that, according to his belief, important steps forward have been made in the past years and the foundations for the further development of Sarajevo Canton have been laid.
“However, no result can be more important than citizens’ trust in institutions. When that trust is shaken, it is the duty of those in public positions to take responsibility and provide space for a new beginning,” said Uk.
He thanked his colleagues, representatives of the Assembly of Sarajevo Canton, ministers and citizens, and announced that he will perform his duties until the appointment of a new prime minister. He called on the representatives to appoint a representative as soon as possible and start the process of forming a new cantonal government.
The representative of the SDA in the CS Assembly, Mahir Dević, assessed that the resignation of the prime minister does not represent a special moral act, stressing that knowledge and competence must go with the function.
“It is not a special moral act that you resigned. You cannot say that you were a responsible prime minister if the report on GRAS was not submitted to the Parliament for six years, nor was the report on the work of the Student Center in the last four years,” said Dević.
On the other hand, SBiH representative Muamer Bandić stated that it was difficult to attribute all responsibility to the prime minister, emphasizing that Uk did not have complete political power over all processes.
“But, he saw the state of the entire process and resigned so that responsibility could be transferred to someone else,” said Bandić, Fena writes.
