CHECK ON WHAT USAID MONEY WAS SPENT ON IN PROGRESS

BANJA LUKA, FEBRUARY 8 /SRNA/ - The Ministry of Interior /MoI/ of Republika Srpska, under the supervision of competent prosecutors' offices, is going to undertake all necessary measures and actions to determine possible irregularities in the operations of legal entities to which funds from the US Agency for International Development /USAID/ grants were donated, the MoI told SRNA.

The MoI has emphasized it is going to take measures and actions in accordance with Article 227 of the Criminal Procedure Code. SRNA learns the MoI has already requested information from the competent institutions and the checks are in progress. The President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, has said today that he will initiate an investigation against USAID and its role in financing the media and non-governmental organisations through the US Embassy, which worked to destabilize Republika Srpska and BiH. He said that USAID spent $ 402 million on black operations to destabilize BiH. USAID financed the introduction of new digital technologies in the election process in BiH using equipment from the Smartmatic Company, which became globally known after supporters of US President Donald Trump accused this company of manipulating the results of the 2020 US presidential elections. Večernji List daily reports that an increasing number of USAID critics question the transparency of Smartmatic equipment, raising questions about possible abuses, corruption and manipulations. "Given the history of controversies surrounding Smartmatic technology, it is clear that trust in the electoral process in BiH will be seriously tested," the newspaper reports.