On January 15, the Hospodárske noviny daily reported that cabinet members are still awarding subsidies and contracts to their friends and associates.
Education Minister Ján Mikolaj recently assigned subsidies valued at Sk1.5 million to a secondary school in Žilina whose director advises Mikolaj on education policy and whose deputy director is married to the head of a department in the Education Ministry. All the parties have denied allegations that the funds are connected to their relationship with the minister.
But former education minister László Szigeti (SMK) has criticized Mikolaj for the situation, adding that the minister’s failure to establish clear guidelines on allocating funds is to blame. And Emilia Sičáková-Beblavá, head of Transparency International, has warned that a lack of transparency could lead to cronyism. SITA
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
