Authorities in Bosnia's Una-Sana Canton (USK) initiated an investigation into the 'Diploma' affair, which emerged last week when a journalist from the local 'Zurnal' magazine managed to purchase a four-year high school diploma in the northern town of Tesanj, USK Education Minister Damir Omerdic told N1 on Tuesday.
Omerdic also confirmed that the USK Interior Ministry conducted its own investigation during which they seized the relevant documents from the Sanski Most based ‘Multilingua’ school which allegedly sold the said diploma for a medical nurse.
“We formed our audit commission which came to Sanski Most, some 130 kilometres from the north-western town of Bihac. When they asked to see the documents, they were informed that the Interior Ministry seized them already,” Omerdic said for N1.
He confirmed that his Ministry learned of this case from the media and added that they did everything by the law.
It is still unknown who will lead the investigation, them or the police, but Omerdic confirmed that should the media reports be confirmed, the school will most likely be shut down.
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Last week, Zurnal’s Azra Omerovic published a story saying she allegedly bought a state-verified four-year medical school diploma in only 17 days. According to her, the diploma said her average grade during her studies, which usually last for four years, was ‘B.’
The purchase took place in a Tesanj restaurant in northern Bosnia and the ‘Zurnal’ magazine also wrote that they paid 2,500 marks (some € 1,200) for the diploma which was brought to them via a mediator.
According to the cantonal Interior Ministry spokesperson Snezana Galic, the police crime unit and the Cantonal Prosecutor searched the said school on Tuesday. The police were investigating a possible forgery of an official document issued by the Center for Adult Education in Sanski Most.
She said for N1 that police seized certain documents from the school and added that the investigation would continue in the following days.
