BANJA LUKA – The mayor of Teslić and president of the opposition Serb Democratic Party (SDS), Milan Miličević, was taken to the competent Prosecutor’s Office in Banja Luka on Tuesday, a day after he was arrested on suspicion of abuse of office and attempting to influence voters’ will through financial misconduct.
The arrest followed several hours of a search of the SDS leader’s home, during which the Republic Public Prosecutor’s Office reported finding €200,000 in cash.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, an investigation has been launched against the leader of the largest opposition party in Republika Srpska (RS) on suspicion of committing the criminal offences of “accepting bribes” and “influence peddling.”
Also under investigation are Mehmed Dubravac, President of the Teslić Municipal Assembly from the Social Democratic Party (SDP), and Meša Jašarević, a councillor from the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) in the local assembly.
“The money that was found is not of criminal origin. It was collected over the course of at least a decade by five doctors, including myself. The money was voluntarily surrendered,” Miličević said following his arrest, insisting that the case against him is politically motivated.
In addition to being an opposition figure governing a strategically important municipality in RS, Miličević is the only political leader in the entity who publicly supported the recent student protests in Serbia.
This marks the latest challenge for the opposition in RS, following the adoption of a new law on 21 May by the entity parliament that eliminates public funding for political parties from the entity and local budgets.
Earlier, on 9 May, a coalition of opposition parties in RS, led by the SDS, signed a cooperation platform with the “Trojka” alliance from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, aimed at unblocking state institutions and advancing the country’s EU integration.
The arrest of Milan Miličević has undermined the opposition’s plans in Republika Srpska to reach an agreement with parties in the other Bosnian entity, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and remove Milorad Dodik’s SNSD from power at the state level.
Opposition parties in the RS have condemned the arrest as a politically motivated crackdown on dissent.
“The arrest of Milan Miličević is not a legal matter, but a political move and an abuse of the law, justice, and institutions,” said Draško Stanivuković, President of the Party of Democratic Progress (PDP).
Support for Miličević also came from Sarajevo. Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Minister of Defence, Zukan Helez, voiced his backing and stated that “the regime in Republika Srpska is becoming increasingly ruthless in its crackdown on dissenters.”