After a session of the Party of Democratic Action (SDA), the main Bosniak party in the country, party leader and Bosniak member of the country’s tripartite presidency Bakir Izetbegovic finally told reporters the reason why he did not attend the ceremonial opening of the International Economic Fair in Mostar.

“I think this is what Covic wanted it to be like. The Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina stood behind the Mostar Fair, with it’s reputation and authority. I got an invitation on which it was nowhere written that we (the Presidency) are even sponsors of the event. What was my role there supposed to be?” Izetbegović asked.

This was, according to the Bosniak Presidency member, “done intentionally”, and for him “there was no other option than not to reply to the invitation.” Izetbegovic had opened the same Fair two years ago, he said, when “it was a given,” since the Presidency was named as a sponsor back then.

“This time, Covic decided on the way things happened, he has such influence,” Izetbegovic said. “I think that was not fair or wise. I think that Covic did not behave in a fair way towards Bosniaks or coalition partners in general during his mandate,” he added.

“The Croat National Assembly (HNS) – a political organization of Croat parties in Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Covic want to decide on what the priorities and the rules of the game are. They would like it to be so that five (other) parties have nothing to say,” he added.

Izetbegovic also spoke about the conclusions the SDA came to at their session, the current political situation, including why a contract between the official Islamic Community in the country was not yet signed.

“The Council of Ministers proposed the contract in this mandate, I tried to put it on the agenda three times, but each time we were told to wait for a solution to come up,” he said, adding that Serb Presidency member Mladen Ivanić found a solution together with the IC, but that when Covic took over the presidency chairmanship according to the eight month rotating structure between the three Presidents, he “took away two years from us”.

The Orthodox and Catholic communities have already signed a contract with the state.