The Bosniak Party (BS) will not threaten the stability of the ruling coalition, despite the dismissal of the president of the Petnjica Municipal Council, Adnan Muhović, and the sentence against the mayor of Plav, Orhan Šahmanović, although this could cost it a drop in ratings and strengthening of internal divisions. On the other hand, by tolerating the pressures of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) at the local level, BS leader Rafet Husović will try to provide space for the appointment of dissatisfied party colleagues to state positions and preserve peace in the party.
Emphasizing that the BS leadership has access to numerous resources by participating in the government, Damir Nikočević from the Center for Civic Education (CGO) believes that the party will continue to give priority to this.
"DPS needs BS, despite individual wanderings that cause a lot of nervousness and humiliate the coalition. The DPS and the Bosniak Party are in the same interest relationship, and as long as that common interest is preserved, I do not expect any changes within the ruling coalition, and not every interest relationship is inevitable and pleasant", believes Nikočević, stressing that this could cause fractures within the party. .
Husović recently showed how he could solve problems in the party by appointing Rešad Sijarić as Acting Director of the Institute for Education. The president of the party committee in Bijelo Polje was promoted three months after he left the ruling coalition in that city and asked the party leadership to terminate the coalition with DPS. Muhović also hinted recently that he could get some of the positions at the state level, stating that he had talked with Husović about it before the parliamentary elections.
Commenting on Muhović's dismissal, Husović recently assessed that the coalition agreement with DPS can be terminated in the same way as it was concluded, without specifying whether he will discuss it with DPS leaders. He announced an appeal to the Administrative Court due to Muhović's dismissal and legal assistance to Šahmanović, who was sentenced to a year in prison for abuse of official position.
Nikočević believes that persistent insistence on cooperation with DPS at the state level can cost BS in the parliamentary elections. "Even in the last elections, they were punished for insufficient resistance compared to a bigger partner. "Sooner or later, parties that cooperate with DPS for a long time, and do not show deviation from such politics, lose their identity and disappear from the political scene", he believes.
Local divisions will become stronger
With the removal of Muhović, BS was left without power in an important municipality in the north, where they had a good election result. Bosniaks now hold power only in Rožaje and Plav, while in Podgorica and Bar they form a smaller part of the ruling coalition.
"The results of the BS will depend on who has the majority in the local committees, the current close to the current president Rafet Husović or individuals who oppose his policies. "The predominance of currents close to the president of Plav Municipality, Orhan Šahmanović, would certainly influence the re-examination of the leadership in that party and a different positioning of the party in the future," Nikočević believes.
Bonus video:
