Good evening. Here is theTuesday, October 8 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
President Pellegrini supports doctors, warns PM Fico
President Peter Pellegrini (fourth from the left) during a meeting with healthcare representatives on Tuesday, October 8, 2024, at the Presidential Palace in Bratislava. (source: TASR - Martin Baumann)
President Peter Pellegrini, who was part of the governing coalition until early June and served as the leader of the Hlas party (he now holds the title of honorary chair), has issued a stark warning to Prime Minister Robert Fico’s government. On Tuesday, he urged the prime minister to reach a compromise with representatives of doctors, paramedics, nurses, and hospitals over wages.
“If the government fails to find a compromise, I will have to take that into consideration when making my decision,” the president said.
Pellegrini, who met with outgoing Health Minister Zuzana Dolinková (Hlas) the same day, is contemplating withholding his signature from part of the fiscal consolidation package law aimed at fixing public finances. He voiced concerns that the law, which includes a slower wage growth measure targeting medical workers and the transformation of hospitals into joint-stock companies, could trigger a mass exodus of healthcare workers due to insufficient wage increases.
“I believe the health of Slovakia and the current state of the healthcare system must be the government’s priority,” Pellegrini stated.
Healthcare organisations claim the government has not consulted them on these plans to date. If no agreement is reached, doctors and nurses are prepared to refuse to work overtime, which could severely disrupt medical services. The government has 12 days to find a compromise.
Dolinková, who announced her intention to resign last Friday due to a lack of support from the prime minister, remains in her post for now. Pellegrini has not yet accepted her resignation, awaiting a successor to be proposed by Fico. Hlas party leader Matúš Šutaj Eštok plans to submit a nomination for the post to Fico in the coming days.
Over the weekend, Pellegrini expressed surprise that the first minister he would be removing was Dolinková, his former party colleague. He was alluding to public dissatisfaction with Culture Minister Martina Šimkovičová, who was nominated by the far-right, pro-Russian Slovak National Party (SNS), and to the growing calls for her resignation. Tensions between SNS and Hlas have been brewing in recent months, with the nationalist party also taking aim at Pellegrini.
Pellegrini was a member of Fico’s party, Smer, before leaving to establish his own party, Hlas, in 2020. Despite claiming he would not serve in a government with Fico, he assisted Fico in forming his fourth government last October.
MORE STORIES FROM THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR WEBSITE
Politics: Prime Minister Fico lashed out at journalists on Tuesday, comparing them to ‘bloodthirsty bastards’.
Culture: The new National Theatre director refused to sign a contract for a performance that was set to take place as part of a queer theatre festival later this month.
Sport: Hockey player Juraj Slafkovský is enjoying life in Canada, but less so in Slovakia.
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FEATURE STORY
Visiting Stará Ľubovňa
Stará Ľubovňa Castle. (source: Lukáš Klčo)
Despite difficult roads, visitors to Stará Ľubovňa are attracted by its castle and local delicacies like ‘brick’ cheese and sour cabbage juice. However, the region’s tourism faces its share of challenges.
Related: Here’s what we recommend exploring in and around the town.
ACTIVITY
Boating in Železná studnička
Boats on one of the ponds in Železná studnička. (source: Facebook/Mestské lesy v Bratislave)
Set sail for some weekend fun at Bratislava’s Železná studnička green space. Boating is in full swing until the end of October, from 10:00 to 17:00. You can find six boats on a pond just a hop, skip, and a jump from Partizánska lúka, a popular green area with playgrounds, easily reachable by bus 43. For €5, you can glide across the water for 30 minutes of pure joy! And did you know? This spot has a rich history—four lakes were created here in 1846 to power nine water mills.
IN OTHER NEWS
Property prices across Slovakia rose in the third quarter of this year, driven by a higher number of listings on real estate websites and declining mortgage interest rates, according to the real estate website Nehnuteľnosti.sk. The most significant increases were observed in Košice IV and Žilina. (TASR)
Inclusive education is gradually being introduced in Slovak schools, yet significant challenges persist, particularly in cultivating an inclusive culture, according to the State School Inspection (ŠŠI), which evaluated 11 selected primary schools. The inclusion index at these institutions stood at 60.7 percent, with many struggling to create a truly inclusive environment. Chief school inspector Alžbeta Štofková Dianovská highlighted a notable lack of references to inclusion in educational programmes and acknowledged that teachers are often unprepared for inclusive education. Relationships between teachers and students frequently failed to foster a sense of security, and most students exhibited negative attitudes towards their peers with special educational needs. Furthermore, over 70 percent of the schools assessed lacked barrier-free access, and many did not maintain adequate documentation for students with special needs. The ŠŠI also identified ineffective utilisation of teaching assistants. (TASR)
Agrofert, the Czech owner of Penam bakeries, has been fined €21 million for acquiring bakeries in Bratislava and Žilina without prior approval from the Antimonopoly Office (PMÚ). This marks one of the largest fines in the office’s history due to a concentration that violates competition laws. The acquisition involved the Prvá bratislavská pekáreň in 2013 and the Peza bakery in Žilina in 2016, which Agrofert allegedly attempted to circumvent by acquiring them in close succession to avoid scrutiny. The PMÚ’s findings revealed that Agrofert effectively controlled both bakeries simultaneously since 2013, although control over the Žilina bakery was kept secret for two years through a third party. This case is particularly significant as Agrofert’s initial attempt to acquire both bakeries in 2011 was blocked due to concerns over market dominance. Agrofert has stated it will appeal the PMÚ’s decision, claiming it is erroneous and unlawful.
More than 23 percent of employees in Slovakia work shifts, giving the country the highest proportion of night workers in the European Union. Slovaks average 39.6 hours of work per week, which is 2.5 hours more than the EU average, according to the Confederation of Trade Unions. (TASR)
The Let’s Stop Corruption Foundation plans to request the General Prosecutor’s Office to investigate the Bratislava District Office’s decision that Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok (Hlas) did not commit any violations regarding paid social media posts attacking presidential candidate Ivan Korčok prior to the elections earlier this year, which were won by Hlas party leader Peter Pellegrini. The foundation describes the ruling as absurd. The foundation expressed surprise at the District Office’s assertion that Facebook cannot be considered a mass media outlet. They noted that the office, which falls under the Interior Ministry headed by Šutaj Eštok, claimed the information shared on Facebook lacked sufficient public reach to disrupt the electoral moratorium, despite the promoted posts reportedly reaching around one million users.
František Imrecze, the former head of Slovakia’s Financial Administration (the country’s main tax office - Ed.), has had his prosecution conditionally suspended by a prosecutor in connection with six counts of corruption and abuse of office related to the Mýtnik case. This decision comes after Imrecze’s cooperation in the investigation, which has been pivotal in clarifying the corrupt activities. Prosecutor Ondrej Repa indicated that Imrecze did not gain financially from many of the incidents and primarily served as an intermediary for bribes. In the Mýtnik case, he received a conditional three-year prison sentence accompanied by a five-year probation period, along with a fine of €202,000. Should he fail to pay the fine, he faces an additional three years in prison. Imrecze is also collaborating as a defendant in several other ongoing cases. He currently faces another criminal case at the General Prosecutor’s Office. (Aktuality)
Construction of a tram line in the Bratislava borough of Petržalka on October 8, 2024. (source: TASR - Miro Košírer)
WEATHER FOR WEDNESDAY: The weather will be mostly cloudy to overcast, with rain or showers expected in several areas, although the east will experience less precipitation. Daytime temperatures will reach between 13°C and 18°C, with the southwest and southeast potentially reaching around 20°C. A predominantly southerly wind will blow at speeds of up to 45 km/h, with gusts of up to 60 km/h. In higher altitudes, brief periods of gale-force winds are expected. (SHMÚ)
OCTOBER 9 NAME DAY IN SLOVAKIA: Dionýz.
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