Representatives of the organization Restart Srpska and opponents of the construction of solar power plants on the former agricultural land in Podnovlje near Doboj gathered in this settlement and expressed their displeasure at the non-compliance with the verdict of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Srpska.
This verdict, according to them, challenged the sale of land owned by the Podnovlje Agricultural Cooperative. The disputed land was sold by the City of Doboj to the Banja Luka company Etmax for one and a half million marks.
In the last two months, the appearance of the former agricultural land in the vicinity of Doboj has changed. Everything was done illegally, says local resident and representative of the local Agricultural Cooperative Novak Danilović.
NOVAK DANILOVIĆ, Agricultural cooperative Podnovlje, Doboj
“The land is owned one by one by the Agricultural Cooperative. Without discussion, the Municipality stole it.”
The city of Doboj sold 30 hectares to the Etmax company from Banja Luka for one and a half million marks. Although the Supreme Court of Republika Srpska contested the change of land ownership at the end of April, work is still being done on the ground.
NOVAK DANILOVIĆ, Agricultural cooperative Podnovlje, Doboj
“They committed a number of criminal acts from municipal authorities to republican authorities. Everyone participated in it.”
Opponents of the construction of solar power plants, who were also supported by activists from Banja Luka, pointed to the verdict of the Entity Supreme Court. They vividly said that they blame the politicians in Doboj and the Banja Luka investor.
STEFAN BLAGIĆ, Restart Srpska
“The verdict of the Supreme Court, which orders that everything be returned to its original state, is not that it is not respected, but they just started working after the verdict. Imagine that insolence.”
DRAGIĆ RUŽOJČIĆ, resident of Podnovlje
“We will probably decide not to respect the institutions anymore, to show some disobedience. I’m not going to say that we should start demolishing. It’s not quite there yet, but we also know that, if we have to, if they know how to build, we also know how to demolish.”
Although this is clearly about one plot and one investor, the construction of one but about a hundred smaller solar power plants is not planned on this land, which, according to experts, investors resort to in order to avoid paying concession fees and obtaining simpler permits from the field of environmental protection.
DRAGIĆ RUŽOJČIĆ, resident of Podnovlje
“What does that bring us? Do we have any benefit, we don’t. So far, not a single mark has come to the local community, to its budget, from this. Who took the money, what they invested in, we have no idea.”
For months, the representatives of the Doboj City Administration and the Banja Luka company Etmax did not answer questions about the allegations of local residents, while the representative of the Republic Administration for Geodetic and Property Legal Affairs did not answer the phone.
