A Bosnian Serb Parliamentarian who supported Thursday’s Croat veto on a proposed law concerning elections has abused his office, the Vice President of the Federation (FBiH), one of Bosnia’s two semi-autonomous regions, Milan Dunovic, told N1.

When the Croat representatives in the FBiH Parliament initiated a constitutional procedure to halt a law proposal that four Sarajevo-based political parties had put together to try and find a solution to the issue of Bosnia’s unconstitutional Election Law, a Serb Parliamentarian, Drago Puzigaca, agreed with them, opposing the will of other Serb representatives in the FBiH House of Peoples.  

The Croats launched the procedure claiming the law is hurting Croat national interests but the issue could end up at the Constitutional Court which ultimately decides whether the claim is justified or not.  

Puzigaca is a member of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD), a Bosnian Serb nationalist political party whose leader had announced a coalition with the main Bosnian Croat party in the country, the Croat Democratic Union (HDZ).  

Four Serb representatives in the FBiH House of Peoples immediately requested Puzigaca be removed from leading the Serb club within the House.

Commenting on Puzigaca’s move, Dunovic said that being a member of the SNSD, Puzigaca, was “the greatest Croat among Serbs.”  

“Together with Lidija Bradara he signed the request for the protection of the vital national interest of members of the HDZ. In no way are the interests of the Croat people endangered by the proposal of this law,” Dunovic said.  

Lidija Bradara is the Chairman of the House of Peoples and Puzigaca is her deputy.  

The law proposal allows all citizens to be elected, but the HDZ wants to take that right away from Croats living in Sarajevo, Tuzla or Gorazde (areas of Bosnia not dominated by the HDZ), and to Bosniaks in Stolac or Mostar (areas dominated by HDZ supporting Croats), Dunovic said.  

“The Serb caucus is entitled to initiate his removal,” Dunovic said, claiming that Puzigaca had signed the HDZ request before the session had even started.