The Commission for Prevention of Conflict of Interest of Republika Srpska has decided that a councilor in Kneževo can serve as acting assistant minister, while in another case it decided that a councilor of the Municipal Assembly of Kotor Varoš cannot serve as acting assistant minister, as these are incompatible functions. Such contradictory decisions in similar situations undermine legal certainty and render the conflict of interest law meaningless, further undermining citizens’ trust in the work of institutions.
The Commission for Prevention of Conflict of Interest in Government Bodies of Republika Srpska has decided that Predrag Tešić, councilor in the Municipal Assembly of Kotor Varoš and acting assistant minister of trade and tourism of Republika Srpska, is in a conflict of interest. By performing these two functions, Tešić violated the principles of conscientiousness and responsibility, as he should have been aware of the incompatibility of his functions and submitted his resignation to preserve the credibility of public office.
This decision was later confirmed by the judgment of the District Court in Banja Luka, which emphasized that there is no difference between the function of acting officer and permanent employment, in terms of prohibitions prescribed by the Law on Civil Servants of RS and the Law on Prevention of Conflict of Interest of RS.
However, the Commission, just four months earlier, in a similar case made a different decision and suspended proceedings against Aleksandar Plaznić, councilor in the Municipal Assembly of Kneževo and acting assistant minister for treasury in the Ministry of Finance of RS. The justification for this was that the function of acting officer does not have a permanent character which is why there is no conflict of interest, which is a continuation of the previous practice of this commission that for years held the position that persons appointed as acting officers do not perform duties at full capacity, based on which it was enabled that many deputies, councilors and other officials perform functions in public enterprises without sanctions.
This approach shows how the Commission applies the law in an arbitrary manner, creating unequal treatment in similar legal situations. TI BiH emphasizes that such Commission decisions not only further undermine citizens’ trust in institutions which is already at an unsatisfactory level, but also seriously threaten the rule of law and European perspectives of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Recent amendments to the law adopted by the NSRS which enable officials in Republika Srpska to perform additional functions in associations financed by public money if they do not receive compensation for it, have further weakened the existing framework whereby conflict of interest in this entity has been practically legalized. The current practice of the Commission, unfortunately, indicates selective interpretation of the law and creates legal uncertainty which weakens the already low level of institutional integrity.
Therefore, TI BiH calls for urgent reforms to ensure independence, increase transparency and prevent arbitrariness in decision-making by commissions that should decide on conflicts of interest.
