The Smer caucus decided to withdraw its proposal to nominate Juraj Kalina to the post of the Nation's Memory Institute (ÚPN) administration board chairman, three independent sources close to Smer confirmed to the TASR newswire on Monday, January 28.
One of the reasons for this move pertains to Kalina's alleged negative stance towards the controversial Svätopluk statue at Bratislava Castle. According to available information, Kalina was not even given a chance to present himself to the lawmakers and was only told about their decision. "I won't make any comments on this," Kalina told TASR.
Smer spokesperson Monika Počatková refused to provide any comments, stating that the party's official stance will be announced on Tuesday (January 29). If Smer is to withdraw its candidate, then the only candidate running for the post is former Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) MP František Mikloško, supported by the opposition.
[The Svätopluk statue was highly criticised as glossing over the historic facts of the period - ed. note]
(Source: TASR)
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
29. Jan 2013 at 10:00