Drivers in Bosnia and Herzegovina have blocked the roads in Banjaluka, Mostar and other cities, thus expressing their discontent with the petrol prices in Bosnia and Herzegovina which rose three times in 2018.

Just before 5 pm, Monday, drivers blocked several roads in several major cities in Bosnia while police only observed the protestors. Several parties from the ruling majority as well as the opposition also expressed their discontent with petrol prices.

The Union for a Better Future (SBB) said the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) entity Prime Minister Fadil Novalic along with all the ministers from the government and the competent minister Zlatan Vujanovic must urgently stop the monopolistic behaviour of gas station owners. In case they fail to do so, the SBB calls for Novalic and Vujanovic’s dismissal.

The Social Democratic Action party (SDA) said that the excise increase by BAM 0.15 (around EUR 0.07) and the oil price increase on the world market are no excuse for the petrol price increase on gas stations. Therefore, the SDA said the citizens’ discontent is justified.

The Social Democratic Party (SDP), which is an opposition party, unlike the SDA and SBB, said they fully support the citizens protesting due to petrol prices adding that their predictions are, unfortunately, coming true. Several months ago the SDP said the SDA, the Croat Democratic Union (HDZ BiH), the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD), the SBB and the HDZ 1990 caused the petrol price increase with the adoption of the Excise Tax Law.

The drivers protested for one hour, thus expressing their discontent.

(EUR 1 = BAM 1.95583)