THE NATIONAL Property Fund (NPF) paid Sk100,000 to the Nitra-based Media Vision Agency (MVA) to collect copies of media articles in which the Fund was mentioned and produce copies of its research budget, the Sme daily wrote on April 11.
The NPF already has contracts with two media monitoring companies, yet pays MVA Sk100,000 a month to accumulate material that justifies the Fund's existence, Sme wrote.
Daniel Lipšic, an MP for the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) and a former justice minister, told the daily that this could be "a clear case of tunnelling funds to an allied firm."
He declared the NPF redundant and useless.
Sme cited invoices that the MVA sent to the NPF between January and March. In January, the MVA charged almost Sk97,000 for "the consultation and preparation of a media plan for 2008." The second, also for Sk97,000, was paid for press monitoring in February, as well as a draft layout of the NPF website.
And the third invoice, again for Sk97,000, was paid for press monitoring and for conducting an opinion poll.
The NPF was founded in 1991 to oversee the privitisation of state property.
