Interior Minister Daniel Lipšic has proposed that Supreme Court President Štefan Harabin should be deprived of his bodyguard, Harabin’s spokesperson Sylvia Machalová said on Wednesday, July 14, the TASR newswire reported.
“By this proposal to recall Supreme Court Chair Štefan Harabin's guard, Interior Minister Daniel Lipšic has assumed full moral and political responsibility for [Harabin’s] security," TASR quoted a statement from the Supreme Court as saying. Harabin’s office has accused Lipšic of acting based on political retribution rather than an expert viewpoint. The two men are long-time political adversaries.
“Security risks weren’t analysed at all, while Harabin has received several threats in the past. Physical liquidation may be one of the options for getting rid of an opponent,” read the sharp-toned statement, as quoted by TASR
In response, Lipšic said that Supreme Court chairs never used to have bodyguards. “Guards were assigned only after Štefan Harabin left the post of Justice Minister [for the post of Supreme Court president]. In the EU it is not usual for Supreme Court chairs to have assigned bodyguards,” Lipšic said. The minister pointed out that Harabin’s bodyguards cost the state €167,000 annually. “This amount is partly due to the fact that the Supreme Court President also used the guard on his exotic [official] trips to Australia, Brazil and China. The Interior Ministry has no information that Harabin might currently be dealing with any serious criminal case,” Lipšic added.
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.
