It is about Esa Šabić, as many call him, the first broom of the city of Mostar, at which he laughs with pride.
“All that was taken from the weapon was the heart, hands and shovel”, are the words of the No Smoking song, which they sang about the “hero” of their time, Avdije in question, whose “day was struck, and his dream was a thousand tons in one day”. . The words of that song can be identified with the “hero” from Mostar, who uses the same weapon to which we can also add a broom, and the second part of the mentioned text can be changed to “his day is beaten, and his dream is cleaned Mostar every day”. It is about Esa Šabić, as many call him, the first broom of the city of Mostar, at which he laughs with pride.
The protective face of the streets of Mostar
Eso Šabić was born in Mostar in 1971 and is one of nine brothers and sisters. He grew up in Franjevacka Street, where he still lives today, and as he says, before the war he resold fish and did whatever was offered to him in order to earn money for the family. The mother did not work, and the father worked in a spinning mill until the war.
In 1997, he got a job at JP Parkovi doo and from that day until today, Šabić became the face of the streets of Mostar. “To tell you the truth, they are honest people, especially these new ones who came. We will also get a hundred marks for Easter, they also said for Eid, I really have nothing bad to say about those people”, Šabić praises the current management of JP Parkovi. Sabić is also satisfied with his colleagues, because as he says, they also make his job easier – he no longer has to cover as much ground as he did before. “I am satisfied with this new team, they are working and they are nice people”, he says, adding that things are much better now than before.
“I fight for all the people of this city”
It emphasizes, as we notice ourselves, how people see and value his work. “It has to be clean, so that people can breathe better, they tell me ‘Shabi, since you’ve been cleaning, there’s no corona in this city’ and that’s right, the streets have to be cleaned so that this city looks like a city”, he points out, adding that he wants everyone to be good – “from the old to the young, I fight for all the people of this city”.
He proudly shows us the streets he is in charge of and, hands down, everything is as he tells us – no papers, no leaves, everything is clean. Šabić also leads a fight with pine needles that no one but him notices and that don’t bother anyone but him. “I picked them up this morning, but what am I going to do, as soon as the wind blows it will be the same again and I will come and pick them up again, that’s my job,” he says firmly. He is healthy, he tells us, and nothing prevents him from doing his job as best as possible and he will work, as he tells us, as long as he is young.
There is work for anyone who wants to work
While we are talking, at no point did he ‘squeak’ and say that he is having a hard time. The only thing that bothers him, he says, is that people say he has no work and no money. “My friend, there are always picks and shovels, there is work for anyone who wants to work. People say ‘there is no money’, come to Parkove and there will be work and money”, he emphasizes. “Work and earn. Your salaries are regular, all the new ones in the administration are nice people and look after you”, he said. To those stories about how things used to be better, and that the city was cleaner, the hero of this story resolutely answers with “whatever”. “Now it is cleaner than it has ever been and will be even cleaner and more beautiful. A lot of flowers are planted, palm trees will be planted, Mostar will be the most beautiful”, adds Šabić, who on this occasion addresses words of praise to the mayor of the City of Mostar and the current authorities in Mostar, whom he says are “taking good care of them”. “If it wasn’t for Maria, these tiles wouldn’t even exist. Before, there were always those holes, so my shoes always ‘fall off’, I changed over 300 shoes because of those holes, and now everything is fine”, he claims. He says that they don’t lack equipment either, that a new one has arrived and that they promised them more additional equipment and tools to make their work easier.
“You see, everything will happen, and before I remember, I was giving money from my own pocket and buying nylons so that I could do the job properly”, he tells us. “I appreciate those people and I will always appreciate them,” Sabić is determined in his praise.
“I love people, and I see that they love me too”
It is difficult to have a conversation with Šabić because hardly a minute goes by without someone interrupting him, extending his hand and asking “how are you”, while he, not answering the question about his health, answers with the counter-question “how are you?” ”, with a smile as an accessory.
“Everyone knows me, I love all people, and I see that they love me too, and how can I not be happy when I see that now everyone is painting the streets and bragging about a clean city”, he says with pride. Even though he has parts of the city that he is in charge of, he goes on his own and cleans a street that he thinks could have been cleaned better. He is also looking forward to the Mostar fair, which Šabić hopes will be cleaned and prepared by him. “I went before and cleaned before, but also during the fair. I go, I prepare, so that it will be extra when people come”, emphasizes Šabić and lists the parts of the city that he covered, and indeed, it seems that there is no corner of the city where his foot did not set foot and the broom swept.
What would you do if you found yourself in the position of mayor of Mostar?
As we walk through the streets with Šabić, we ask him if he would ever like to do some ‘office’ work, but we weren’t too surprised by his answer. “I wouldn’t, it’s not for me, what kind of office, I like the pitch, the pitch is the main thing”, answers Sabić.
We also ask him what he would do if he found himself in the position of mayor of Mostar. “I would build fountains, I would turn all green areas into parks for children – to have swings and see-saws, benches and tables, and I would place cameras in those places so that no one would destroy them, and I would also place a policeman in each of those places”, he answers. He couldn’t even choose the most beautiful street in Mostar because he says that every street in this city is the most beautiful street. “There is no street that I haven’t cleaned and every street is the most beautiful when it is cleaned, it just needs to be maintained and taken care of,” he points out and adds that improperly parked cars interfere with his work.
“Who will maintain the city if I go on vacation”
Every day we see him on the streets, rain or shine, so we ask him if there is time to rest? “The directors say to me, ‘Šabi, why don’t you go on vacation’, and I ask them, ‘so who is going to maintain this city’ because no one can clean the city like me”, says Šabić, and to our surprise, an additional question “so do you a clean city is more important than your vacation”, without thinking he answers “it is”. “I do all this to make people feel better and I’m happy when people stop me and say ‘well done Šaba, kudos to you,'” he adds proudly.
As we bring the conversation with Šabić to an end, our photographer explains to him where he will stop in order to ‘catch’ him, and Šabić, with a slight amount of shame, poses proudly with his “weapon”. At the end, we ask him, “so Shabi, what will you do when you retire”? “Well, I would work with that fish again, but I would also take a look at the streets to see if the city is clean”, concludes Šabić and assures us once again that “his day is beaten, and his dream is cleaned Mostar every day”.
Source: blesak.info
