Blessed are the politicians who have these kind of people. With the unconditional support of their voters, they neither have to do anything, or have to worry about their political career, nor do they have to take into account what they say. They do not have to know how to count, they do not need to have “real” diplomas, especially they don’t have to worry about being held accountable for their crime. No matter what they do, they can always count on the support of their loyal voters.
The World Is Laughing at Us, Again
We were again in the spotlight of the world media, and again it was because they laughed at what kind of politicians we elected and what kind of politicians we allow to remain in office even after numerous scandals, confirmed indictments and brainwashing of citizens. Will we ever come to our senses, gain courage, open our eyes, and stop voting for Fadil, Dragan, Milorad, Bakir, Asim and everyone else whom even the biggest mobsters would envy for the length of the list of criminal acts in which they are involved?
For almost thirty years, we have been listening to the broad masses of the people criticizing the ruling structures, especially the national parties, and then in the elections again those parties get the most votes. At the same time, no one will admit to voting for nationalists and criminals. Who are the citizens and voters who persistently reward such politicians and for what reason? Do frightened citizens vote for them, or does their greater support come from citizens who believed in their stories, or does their greatest support still come from invertebrates who support them out of personal interest?
They say that corrupt politicians are supported by people who are scared, but the question is what are they scared of? Did they believe the story that other nations would subdue or destroy their people if they did not support the self-proclaimed protectors of their people, so out of fear of destruction they submitted to their leaders and squinted at their crime? Or are they still afraid of revenge from their people, if they dare to talk about the crime of their leaders and the crime of their family members and their criminal clan? That fear is not so unrealistic if we look at what happens to those who dare to talk about it. Numerous rebels lost their jobs, as did members of their families. If they fail to silence them with blackmail and threats, then they try to discredit them through the media they bought, and at the same time send their online army of trolls and other mercenaries to these “fifth column”, “traitors”, and “collaborators”. The story is the same on all three sides, and the fear they caused among the people is the one that helps them the most to rule and plunder for the third decade in a row. A series of such dirty media campaigns was enough to silence many citizens in fear that they might be the next victim.
My People Are Better Than Your People
One of the reasons for the unconditional support of citizens to corrupt politicians, who present themselves as elected leaders of their peoples, is that these citizens want to prove to others that their people are better than others. For similar reasons, people support successful sports teams because they feel that if they cheer for the winners, that they are the winners themselves. If they are on the side of the winner, then their personal misery becomes more bearable, at least for a short time. Blinded by fear and seduced by the desire to prove that it is their people who are chosen, superior, and heavenly… The oldest citizens do not notice how rich the leaders of their people have become, and how much the “ordinary” people have become impoverished. It does not matter to the citizens that the alleged protectors of their people get the same amount money for a month of (non) work, as they earn for a whole year of actual work. They do not even see that the protectors of their people get along well with the protectors of other peoples, especially when their interests are at stake, while in public they act as if they are their angry enemies.
Many citizens support bad politicians for personal gain and interest. At the same time, they admire politicians who manage to get rich through lies and fraud, and they themselves want to be like that “when they grow up”. These citizens charge their support to politicians and political parties for some counter-service: a job in the civil service for a child with a purchased diploma, a rigged tender, an incentive for something they do not do, the legalization of an illegal facility and the like. They are the most loyal voters, but not to one party, but to every winning party.
The EU Is Far Away
We look with envy at the countries where citizens are protesting and fighting for their rights. We enthusiastically share the news that corrupt politicians have been punished in some countries, and at the same time we are rewarding ours with another term. Many citizens want and eagerly wait for BiH to join the EU. Unlike leading politicians, who do everything to prevent this from happening because it brings an independent judiciary and the establishment of the rule of law, all with transparent public procurement and the fight against nepotism and corruption.
We envy neighbouring countries when they elect politicians who offer real, instead of cosmetic change, who work transparently and expose the crime of their predecessors. We hope it will be the same with us when we become part of the EU. However, the misconception is that all this will be solved by joining the EU. It did not come to anyone overnight, but it took years of hard work and struggle to achieve it. The EU is not an end in itself. The path to the EU is our goal, that is, meeting the conditions that the EU requires of us, not out of a whim, but at least to some extent reach the level of human rights, economic development, environmental protection and the like, which most EU countries have. The EU will not bring us changes, but we must fight for those changes on the way to the EU. Politicians in the EU do not resign because they are more moral and better people than us. They would even resign because of a purchase of chocolate with state money. This is because the opposition, the media and the entire public, as well as their party, force them to do so. In that way, it becomes clear to all other politicians that they will do badly if they are caught cheating on the state. There is no crime in our country that the parties fail to justify with patriotism and a certain number of wounds received during the war. All this gives a signal to other politicians, but also to everyone else, that crime pays off and that after you steal a million from citizens, not only will you not be punished, but those citizens will declare you a successful politician and a victim of political rigging.
Keep Quiet and Hold It in
While we watch politicians make family coats of arms, visit each other by public-private helicopter, or organize million-dollar weddings for their children, most citizens who vote for them live badly and can’t afford even the basics for their children, let alone the luxury in which the protectors of their peoples and their children live. Is it possible that the crumbs that politicians throw at them are enough? Who, when and how silenced the people and killed the will and desire to rebel and demand their rights? Why do citizens suffer and keep silent about all this?
In order for something to change in our country, we need an independent judiciary, then we need a good and strong opposition that will be a true alternative to the ruling structures, not their pale copy, we need more independent media, and the most important thing is to change people’s consciousness and understand that we are all pulled by the nose by those we rounded up in the elections to represent us. It is time to show them that they will not get away with it by not supporting them in the next elections. It is also time to start demanding the resignations of those who work illegally and to demand the return of money they have illegally appropriated. Bosnia and Herzegovina is not a poor state, it is a plundered state.
We have a long and difficult road ahead of us, and we will only reach the goal if we accept the fact that we are all accomplices in this, and not victims. Instead of waiting for someone else to do something, each of us should do as much as we can. If nothing else, at least go to the polls because regardless of the fact that we live in a hybrid democracy, as they call what we have, it is still a democracy in which politicians come to power in democratic elections. It may be clearer if I try to explain this with Fadil Novalić’s calculation, in which he explained to us that the problem is not that oil has risen in price by 37% as long as we buy 63 litres instead of 100 litres. Which means oil isn’t expensive, we just buy too much. So, if at least 63% of citizens go to the polls, instead of the standard 55%, the chances that Novalić and politicians like him will be elected to parliament are minimal.
