THEY ARE TRYING TO STRIP SRPSKA OF ITS COMPETENCIES, AND THAT MUST NOT BE ALLOWED

BANJA LUKA, MAY 29 /SRNA/ – SNSD representative in the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly, Milorad Kojić, stated today that the positions of the Government of Republika Srpska regarding the protection of its competencies must be respected in order to prevent the abolition of the entity's judiciary and the transfer of all powers to the BiH level.

Kojić said it was no coincidence that yesterday’s session of the House of Representatives included proposals to amend the Law on Public Procurement, supplement the BiH Criminal Code, and adopt a new Law on the Court of BiH, followed immediately by the scheduling of another session.

He emphasized that these three legislative proposals aimed to take competencies away from Republika Srpska and strengthen institutions at the BiH level.

Kojić pointed out that it has become common practice for judicial institutions to influence the will of the people, citing the attempt to remove the President of Republika Srpska from the political scene, which was evident even in France.

“Judicial institutions are being used for such purposes,” Kojić stated.

He noted that the matters proposed at the BiH level are already regulated by the Criminal Code of Republika Srpska.

"Both factions of the ‘Troika’—one trying to stay in power, the other trying to come to power—are working by stripping Republika Srpska of its competencies. This is also the case with the proposed Law on the Court of BiH. We are heading toward a situation where the judiciary of the entity is abolished and everything is handled at the BiH level. We must uphold the positions of the Government of Republika Srpska when it comes to protecting our competencies," Kojić said.

He explained that this is a matter of defending the constitutional and legal order, as well as the Dayton Peace Accords.

"The opposition needs to remember one thing—we were elected in Republika Srpska, the people gave us their mandate, and in joint institutions we must respect the official positions of Republika Srpska's institutions. The opposition follows a different, submissive policy," Kojić concluded.