THE POLICE anti-corruption unit is looking into the Sk7.5 billion tender for the MOKYS mobile communication system for the Slovak army, which was concluded in 2005.
“We are interested in public procurement in all areas including the Defense Ministry,” said Tibor Gašpar, the head of the unit.
John Barter from BAE Systems, which won the tender, recently told the Sme daily that the competition had been managed “professionally and in a correct and transparent manner”.
The tender occurred under Defense Minister Juraj Liška of the now-opposition Slovak Democratic and Christian Union. Liška says that no one influenced him at the time.
“I was informed of the process and the results of the tender, but I did not interfere with the selection of the tender commission,” he said.
British police have been investigating BAE Systems, in particular for its alleged used of bribery during public tenders in various states, including the Czech Republic where the company is suspected of influencing a billion-crown tender for the purchase of army jets.
It is unclear, however, whether British authorities are also looking into the activities of BAE Systems in Slovakia.
