The Prime Minister of Zenica-Doboj Canton Nezir Pivić and the Secretary of the Office for the Fight against Corruption Dževad Fejzić held a reception for elementary school students, authors of the prize-winning art works in the competition of the Office for the Fight against Corruption, published on the occasion of December 9 – the International Day of the Fight against Corruption.
The expert commission evaluated around 450 submitted artworks on the theme “Fighting Corruption” from elementary schools in the area of this canton, and the work of Đejma Botić, a student of the VII grade of the Elementary School “Enver Čolaković” Breza, was declared the best, the second place went to Sara Ramić, a student of the IX grade of the JU “First Elementary School” Maglaj, while the third place was won by Fatima Višća, a student of the ninth grade of the JU “First Elementary School” Zavidovići.
Prime Minister Pivić congratulated the students and their teachers, stressing that the fight against corruption is one of the key priorities of the current Government of Zenica-Doboj Canton. He noted that this was recognized by international organizations, among them Transparency International, which at the recently held conference in Mostar cited this canton as an example of transparency and responsibility in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
– Corruption eats away at society and causes damage, the consequences of which are suffered by all citizens. We are committed to transparency and a domestic relationship with the public budget, and our measures and mechanisms – especially in terms of transparency and openness of the decision-making process – contribute to increasing citizens’ trust in institutions, reducing the scope for abuses and strengthening the responsibility of the authorities – said Prime Minister Pivić.
He praised the work of the Office for the fight against corruption, which for the past two years has carried out a series of activities to prevent and reduce corruption in this canton, independently or in cooperation with international partners. Among other things, publicly available registers of employees and appointed persons in this canton have been established, and several more important registers are being prepared, with the aim of reducing the risk of corrupt activities.
Dževad Fejzić, secretary of the Office for the fight against corruption, said that December 9 is a special opportunity to point out the importance of fighting and preventing corruption. He reminded that this office conducted a campaign from December 1 to 7, one of the segments of which was an art contest for elementary school students.
– We are extremely satisfied with the response of the schools and on this occasion I would like to thank all the students and teachers who submitted their works. This was an opportunity to send a clear message through education and active participation of young people: the fight against corruption requires the responsibility of all citizens and institutions – said Fejzić.
He stated that as part of the campaign, badges were also made that employees in cantonal institutions, including the hospital, police and inspections, wore on their lapels as a symbol of the common fight against corruption and a systemic response to this social challenge.
Award-winning works of art, whose authors also received monetary prizes, as well as works that were shortlisted, are exhibited in the foyer of the building of institutions of the Zenica-Doboj Canton.
