AMIDŽIĆ: THE WILL OF THE SERB PEOPLE IS TO CONTROL THEIR OWN FUNDS

BANJA LUKA, September 1 /SRNA/ - Minister of Finance and Treasury in the Council of Ministers Srđan Amidžić stressed that Serb representatives in Sarajevo must remain united when it comes to spending the money of Republika Srpska, underlining that it is the will of the Serb people to control their own funds.

"The moment a Bosniak was granted access to the current account of Republika Srpska, we lost part of our economic and monetary sovereignty in terms of managing our own money. And now we are paying the price," Amidžić said. Speaking about the proposed BiH institutions' budget, he emphasized the need for unity in defending the will of the Serb people. "The will of the Serb people is to control their own funds. If they want to throw them into a well, let them do so. But no one else can. That is the real issue," Amidžić told ATV. He pointed to a deliberate media manipulation coming from Sarajevo. "They staged a media spin - supposedly a trial against President Milorad Dodik - while in reality they took away the 13th pension from retirees. Today, every retiree in Republika Srpska has lost that 13th pension, since pensions cost around BAM 160 million per month," Amidžić said, adding that this money was spent by Deputy Minister Muhamed Hasanović. Amidžić insisted he cannot accept such actions. "You know what the foundation of independence is economic independence. If you don't have economic independence, you don't have anything. We must fight against that. Every normal person fights against that. This is not about positions in Sarajevo. This is about being rational and saying 'no'," Amidžić stressed. He added that Bosniaks, through the proposed state-level budget, demonstrated the kind of BiH they want - one in which all institutions of Republika Srpska are gradually transferred to the BiH level, noting that "their arrogance knows no bounds." "With this budget, Denis Bećirović and Željko Komšić sent a message about how they see the Serbs - as an 'appendix' in BiH. However, BiH can only function on the basis of the equality of peoples," Amidžić said. The Finance Minister also argued that BiH is more stable when it has as little weaponry as possible, contrary to Defense Minister Zukan Helez's view that BiH should buy more arms. Amidžić highlighted controversial budget items related to arms procurement, financing so-called BiH cultural institutions, and covering the debts of BHRT, while at the same time neglecting workers' rights. He concluded that Bosniaks rejected his budget proposals because, in his words, "they neither like Republika Srpska nor Dayton BiH, but want a BiH tailored to their own will, where only they decide."