Deputy High Representative and Head of OHR (S), Ambassador Jean-Pierre Bercot, is strongly disappointed with the fact that the City Council of Mostar didn’t have enough responsibility and political wisdom at its last session to make some concrete decisive steps in the unification of Mostar.
Namely, at this session of the City Council preconditions should have been made for the formation of a new single Solid Waste Utility Company according to the proposal of the World Bank which was ready to sign a Subsidiary Credit Arrangement for Mostar in the amount of 2 plus 5 mil.$ (2 for the establishment of the regional waste disposal and additional 5 from the Global Environment Fund for cleaning of Neretva River). Unfortunately, the proposal submitted by Mayor Jahic at the session was absolutely not in line with the proposal of the World Bank.
This is very damaging for the whole city as Ambassador Bercot pointed out to Mayor Jahic few days before the session. There is a real danger of loosing the valuable help of the World Bank to Mostar and if this happens, those who are responsible for that should be held responsible by the people of Mostar.
Moreover, the CD Councilors also refused to adopt the Transition and Business Plan for the Airport Mostar. This Airport is now to be fully under the City Administration authority, after the municipalities with Croat majority transferred its competencies to the City. The transition plan is needed as SFOR is to transfer the authority over the flight control to the local authorities by the end of the year, of course if the latter show enough interest in running this airport.
In sum, Ambassador Bercot would like to remind politicians that citizens are not just an excuse for existence of politicians but that politicians should primarily serve the interest of citizens, which in no way was the case at the last Mostar City Council session. It is incomprehensible that some Mostar politicians have an audacity to prevent Mostar citizens to have better communal services and then to loose a generous offer of the World Bank and to sideline the important issue of the Mostar Airport. This is certainly not an attitude which can lead this city into Europe.