Due to U.S. sanctions, yet another company has been forced to shut down, leaving its workers without jobs. Banja Luka’s Invictus Technology Group has announced that it will soon cease operations. Because their bank accounts have been closed, they are forced to halt business, according to director Bojan Vujić. He has announced lawsuits against the banks and is calling for accountability from the Banking Agency. The Agency has responded, stating they are willing to take responsibility if it is found that the law has been violated.
Today, Invictus Technology Group’s offices are empty, with desolate spaces that once employed 160 workers. Contracts with 110 of them have already been terminated. Mirjana Tepčić will soon join them. Without a job or income, she faces an uncertain future.
- It’s incredibly difficult to lose a job, especially under conditions where we have loans and a child. Everyone knows the responsibilities that come with it, one after the other. Our first stop is the Employment Bureau – Tepčić said.
Along with Mirjana, 50 more employees of this company will soon find themselves at the Employment Bureau. Bojan Vujić, the director of Invictus Group, stated that all obligations to workers and the state will be settled. He emphasized that the responsibility for layoffs and the company’s closure lies solely with the banks.
The closure of bank accounts by the banks and the inability to open new ones is the main reason for this. Vujić announced lawsuits and plans to submit an appeal to the Constitutional Court of Republika Srpska, claiming that the banks have placed themselves above the law.
- With the strong support of our employees, we have decided to submit two initiatives to the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, and in the coming days, we will begin collecting signatures as required by the Law on Referendum and Citizens’ Initiative. The first initiative involves amending the Law on Domestic Payment Operations, where we will propose changes that clearly and explicitly define the conditions under which someone can open or close a business account. The second initiative concerns reviewing the work and responsibility of the leadership of the Banking Agency of Republika Srpska – Vujić explained.
Vujić believes that the Banking Agency has not done enough to protect the company. The director of the Banking Agency, Srđan Šuput, stated that they handle all complaints submitted to the Agency but that the relationship between the client and the bank is not within their jurisdiction. If there has been a violation of the law, the Banking Agency will take responsibility.
- The responsibility of anyone leading the Banking Agency lies with the National Assembly. If someone believes that there has been a violation of the law, we will take that responsibility. However, as for commenting on personal matters, I will not engage in that. The relationship between the client and the bank falls under the Law on Obligations, and if any principles or rights have been violated, the courts will decide whether there was a breach – Šuput noted.
Šuput also stated that the Banking Agency itself is in a difficult position due to pressure for its jurisdiction to be transferred to the state level. While foreign actors continue their interventionist policies in Republika Srpska, imposing their will on its citizens, the harsh reality is that 160 more workers will be left without jobs and income. Thus, the U.S. administration, which frequently speaks about protecting human rights, is shutting down yet another economic entity in Srpska. The plight of the workers who lost their jobs and their families seems to be of little concern to them.
Source: RTRS
