Bakir Izetbegovic, leader of the SDA party, spoke exclusively to N1 about the current political situation and the missed opportunity for a new tranche from the Growth Plan, which could have brought significant funds to Bosnia and Herzegovina. Izetbegovic stated that the SDA did not agree to flawed solutions, accusing Elmedin Konakovic of lying and pointing fingers at Dragan Covic for various issues.

Amidst ongoing reactions and accusations between the government and the opposition over the missed 70 million euros from the Growth Plan, which would have benefited the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Izetbegovic emphasized that the SDA is not to blame. “This is not just about 70 million euros; these are very important reforms. The Growth Plan brings vital reforms. The problem is that those who fought fiercely for power now refuse to fight for governance. Compromises need to be made. The U.S. Embassy itself mentioned the issue of the Constitutional Court's decisions, and the entity veto. The 14 priorities state that the supremacy of the state over entities must be achieved. Now, the opposite has happened,” said Izetbegovic.

He criticized the sudden addition of 267 amendments, noting that it was impossible to review such a document in a few days, let alone make decisions in a few hours. “They delivered 267 amendments all of a sudden. This cannot be reviewed in a few days, let alone make decisions in a few hours. The plan, the project, is almost entirely focused on the RS territory, with only a few targeting Croatian areas. Seventy percent of VAT is generated in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” he highlighted.

Izetbegovic rejected the accusation that the SDA did not submit projects, stressing that the issues raised by the U.S. Embassy were verifiable. “These are very verifiable things. The U.S. Embassy mentioned the first two. I mention the third, they adopted an unconstitutional law from the RS and included it in this agenda. We did not interfere in this matter until the moment when one person from the party asked me to. How can he present such a large document to me in just a few minutes? I did get involved, as did the SDA colleagues, and we did help. I told Kojovic not to accept it, to be in power. Why involve the opposition? So they can share the responsibility for harmful solutions,” Izetbegovic explained.

He accused Konakovic of spreading lies and shifting blame, asserting that Konakovic is becoming a problem for the state with his manipulations. “Konakovic is lying constantly. He claims that I and the SDA are the problem, but the real issue is that he is becoming a problem for this state with his endless manipulations and lies. He’s misleading everyone around him,” Izetbegovic declared.

Izetbegovic also pointed out that the SDA never compromised on the integrity of the Constitutional Court and would never agree to undermine it. “We will not agree to any solution that undermines the Constitutional Court or the state's authority. We cannot accept a dictate from Dodik's side, 267 demands in one day. We supported everything before that, we didn’t politicize at all. But they turned everything upside down in one day. Don’t try to blame the SDA for something that isn’t our fault,” he asserted.

He also stressed the importance of verifying the facts and understanding the real issues. “Look at the material. Is what I’m saying true or not? Experts can confirm it. What they accepted in one day is unbelievable,” he said.

Regarding the conversation with Pedja Kojovic, Izetbegovic mentioned, “I told him that it’s time to understand that we need to create a strong pro-Bosnian bloc and not allow ourselves to be confined to one-third. We need to build a strong pro-Bosnian bloc to avoid being squeezed into one-third. I wouldn’t want to delve further into my conversation with Kojovic. We must make a strong pro-Bosnian bloc; we can’t be in a vise.”

He also emphasized that the SDA had always resisted pressures from other parties. “The SDA was in power for a long time with all of them, and we spent the entire mandate in tough battles, never giving in to SNSD or HDZ. We changed the CEC. That is our approach: fight, don’t give in, and don’t surrender. The Troika compromised on many things to gain positions, selling out state interests. If we were in power, we would have acted the same as we do now. We would never have accepted compromises that undermine the Constitutional Court,” Izetbegovic affirmed.

Responding to Dodik’s accusations, Izetbegovic said, “Of course, Dodik doesn’t like the SDA. In a moment of honesty, he said, ‘We won’t be stopped by this invalid structure if we weren’t stopped by the powerful SDA.’ He used a bluff to scare the Troika, and he succeeded.”

“Dodik claims that the problems come from the SDA, but we have fought against him effectively. We have blocked seven of his laws that targeted the state. It’s 7:0 for the SDA against Dodik. The fourth delegate was a mistake, it happens sometimes, but the Troika shouldn’t have repeated it,” Izetbegovic noted.

Commenting on the potential support for Dodik from Putin, Izetbegovic stated, “Putin likes to have his proxies causing trouble. As for Vucic, he’s playing his own games. Dodik is likely pushing this agenda more.”

On the matter of the Serbian military cadets’ visit, he remarked, “They did this in our most painful month, July, when we commemorate the genocide. It was not necessary. Thank God they either postponed or canceled it. They should not play with emotions like this.”

Finally, Izetbegovic commented on Konakovic’s credibility and the economic state, saying, “Konakovic is discrediting everyone around him and shifting the blame. This is a person without a high school diploma. He claims that Silajdzic, Lagumdzija, Becirovic, Radoncic, SBB, SDA, SDP, SBiH didn’t know what they were doing. But Konakovic knows? He is becoming a problem for this state with his manipulations and lies.”

Regarding the financial state, Izetbegovic stated, “The Novalic government left 800 million in cash for Niksic's government, which they spent and additionally borrowed a billion. Look at the borrowing rate. Novalic worked hard to create a positive balance, and now they are spending recklessly. Public enterprises were in surplus when they came in, now they are all in deficit. Electricity prices will rise by 20% after the elections. The EP, which was profitable, is now making daily losses. Industrial production has dropped by 9%, and they haven’t achieved anything,” he concluded.