Archive of articles - December 2012, page 4
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Gorilla
The word ‘Gorilla’ has, since an eponymous leaked file came to light in late December 2011, become a byword in Slovakia for suspicions of widespread political corruption and domestic spying. The Gorilla file, a lengthy document that purports to describe an operation conducted by the Slovak Information Service (SIS), the country’s main intelligence agency, which collected information about the influence of the Penta financial group on senior Slovak politicians between 2005 and 2006, emerged via Slovak media outlets and became the single most resonant issue in Slovakia’s pre-election discourse. Gorilla spilled from newspapers, talk shows and discussion threads onto social networking sites and into the streets.
Gorilla heralds change at the top
THE SINGLE most significant change Slovakia experienced in 2012 was the landslide victory of Robert Fico in the March 10 general election, which left his Smer party with 83 seats, and hence an overall majority of 16 in the 150-seat parliament. Smer, which won 44.41 percent of the vote, has painted Slovakia’s political map red – the party’s campaign colour. It emerged in first place in an astonishing 77 of the country’s 79 districts. Smer even took the capital, Bratislava, with 30.69 percent of the vote, double the support of any of its political rivals.
2012: The year of Gorilla
2012 WAS the year of Gorilla, which is not a newly created sign in Chinese astrology, but rather Slovakia’s byword for political corruption, named after the Gorilla file, a leaked document aspiring to describe the influence of tycoons on Slovak politics between 2005 and 2006. Its deafening roar during massive street rallies where people vented their frustration with murky politics, impacted the results of the parliamentary elections, and paradoxically brought Robert Fico and his Smer party back to power much sooner than his critics had hoped: only a little more than a year and half after he was ousted by the right-wing parties in 2010.
Mistrust in judiciary prevails
The nomination of non-partisan Tomáš Borec, the former chairman of the Slovak Bar Association, to the post of justice minister, prompted a generally positive response back in April. Paradoxically, by the end of the year, Borec became the only minister of Robert Fico’s government whom the opposition had tried (unsuccessfully) to have sacked for what it called his reluctance to support an opposition-initiated parliamentary debate over the critical state of the judiciary, as well as a lack of action to improve this state.
State agrees to changes in gas firm
THE STATE is one step closer to increasing its say in the management of the country’s major gas utility as part of changes to the ownership structure of Slovenský Plynárenský Priemysel (SPP) and its subsidiaries. Ministers on December 12 unblocked the sale of a 49-percent minority share package currently owned jointly by foreign shareholders E.ON Ruhrgas and GDF Suez, thereby giving up its pre-emptive right to purchase the shares. The intended buyer of Slovak Gas Holding, the vehicle for the stake, is the Czech firm Energetický a Průmyslový Holding (EPH), the SITA newswire reported.
March: The top business stories of 2012
RegioJet trains start Komárno run. The first privately-owned passenger trains of RegioJet, a subsidiary of the Czech Student Agency company operating solely within Slovakia, launch services on the route between Komárno and Bratislava.
Relay strikes by teachers continue
SEVERAL teachers have announced that they will not give students their half-year certificates. By doing so they want to persuade the government to devote more money to education and to increase the salaries of teachers and school staff, the Sme daily wrote on December 12.
Fico backs Slovak farmers
SLOVAK farmers should receive at least as much financial support from the EU as those in neighbouring states, Prime Minister Robert Fico said after a meeting with Agriculture Minister Ľubomír Jahnátek and Slovak Agriculture and Food Chamber (SPPK) chairman Milan Semančík on December 11. The representatives discussed the EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which is being prepared for the period of 2014-20.
April: The top business stories of 2012
Kia Motors Slovakia launches second generation of its cee'd model. Kia Motors Slovakia in Teplička nad Váhom launches serial production of the second generation of the Kia cee'd and starts to run at full capacity in a three-shift operation.
Turn off your mobile!
FEBRUARY: DURING a concert of classical music in Prešov synagogue in the summer of 2011, a mobile telephone phone rang and a Prešov-born violin player, Lukáš Kmiť, aged 25, showed a moment of surprise and stared into the audience. The phone’s jingle sounded again and Kmiť then immediately mimicked it on his violin in a brief but astounding improvisation. The audience applauded and laughed – and at least one member of the audience recorded a short video that later appeared on YouTube, attracting millions of viewers.
Tatranská Lomnica offers retro skiing competition
MARCH: A SKI trail called Javorová cesta (Maple Route) on the Buková hora (Beech Mountain) ski slope in Tatranská Lomnica was full of oddly-clad skiers on March 3, when winter sports enthusiasts tried retro skiing on wooden boards without modern amenities and – worst of all – without ski lifts.
Opposition
2012 has been marked by fragmentation of the already numerous centre-right parties on the Slovak political scene. The former ruling coalition parties spent several months licking their wounds after the March 10 election, deciding how to revamp their leaderships and lay out new political prescriptions that connect better with voters in the future.
OECD analyses Slovak economy
THOUGH Slovakia has recovered strongly from the global economic crisis and is weathering well the storm that has struck its main European trading partners, it still has a long way to go if it wants to consolidate its public finances. This is one of the main messages of the Economic Survey of the Slovak Republic presented by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on December 6 in Bratislava.
November: The top business stories of 2012
Collapse of highway bridge under construction claims four lives. Initial findings by investigators suggest that the collapse on November 2 of a highway bridge between Kurimany and Iliašovce, both located in the Levoča district, was caused by weak support. The collapse leads to a discussion over the effect that very low procurement bids have on the quality of construction projects. The collapsed bridge was supposed to be part of the cross-country D1 highway section between Jánovce and Jablonov, which is being constructed by a consortium of two companies: Váhostav-SK and Czech firm Bögl & Krýsl. The section includes five bridges. The collapsed bridge was the only one built in cooperation with a subcontractor, the Slovak company Semos. The collapsed frame was supplied by German-owned firm Skruže Weise.
September: The top business stories of 2012
Slovak to head global chamber. Peter Mihók, the head of the Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry becomes the first-ever Slovak to be elected head of the World Chambers Federation, the only global institution that gathers business subjects and commercial chambers worldwide. He will hold the post for three years, starting January 1, 2013.
Rare eagle gets surgery
MAY: VETERINARIANS from Košice, environmentalists from the Raptor Protection Society of Slovakia (Ochrana dravcov na Slovensku) and representatives of Východo-slovenská energetika (VSE), an electricity distribution company, worked together to save a male Eastern imperial eagle, about four years old, which had been electrocuted at the end of March.
January: The top business stories of 2012
FNM chief sacked over Gorilla file. The cabinet of Iveta Radičová sacks Anna Bubeníková, a nominee of Radičová’s own Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ), from her job as head of the National Property Fund (FNM). Thus Gorilla, a leaked file purporting to describe an operation conducted by the country’s main intelligence agency between 2005 and 2006 over suspicions of high-ranking political corruption, claimed its first victim. The Gorilla file, the authenticity of which remains unverified, suggested that Bubeníková served as a go-between for Jaroslav Haščák, co-owner of the Penta financial group, and the FNM, where she also worked in 2005. As of December 2012, the investigation into the Gorilla file remains uncompleted.
The strikes
Even though 2012 did not see industrial action by any professional group as dramatic as the protest by hospital doctors at the end of 2011, there were professions that made it clear they were no longer willing to keep quiet where their status and salaries are concerned – particularly nurses and teachers.
February: The top business stories of 2012
Slovakia’s government bond rating downgraded. Moody’s Investors Service downgrades Slovakia’s government bond ratings to A2 from A1. The outlook changes to negative. The agency justifies its decision by pointing to the uncertainty over the prospects for institutional reform in the eurozone and the weak macroeconomic outlook across the region. Another factor is Slovakia’s increased susceptibility to financial and political event risk, presenting considerable challenges to achieving the government’s fiscal consolidation targets.
Šaľa dubbed most transparent town
ŠAĽA has been declared the most transparent municipality in Slovakia for 2012, receiving again the accolade it gained in 2010. The result stems from the Open Municipality list compiled by anti-corruption NGO Transparency International Slovensko (TIS). In second was Martin, followed by Rožňava, according to TIS.
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