STATE-RUN Lesy SR forestry company filed a lawsuit and a criminal complaint against MP Ján Mičovský over the protection of its reputation with the Humenné District Court. The reason is recent accusations by the MP against the company in connection to the competition over transporting the wood, the SITA newswire reported on December 10.
The company accused Mičovský of slander and will ask for apology and compensation for the non-pecuniary damages, its spokesperson Vladimír Rezek said.
Mičovský told the press on December 4 that the state-run forestry firm substituted the small wood carriers with new ones whose services are more expensive.
“What happened in the past months in the field of transporting the wood, in public competition over this service, cannot be called anything other than stealing,” Mičovský said, as quoted by SITA.
The MP explained that the previous carriers asked for €4.26 per one cubic metre of wood, while the new ones will ask for €6.33 per cubic metre of wood in the following four years.
“The increase in these seemingly small, inconspicuous numbers is 49 percent,” Mičovský added.
Based on his calculations, the price of transporting the wood increased by €11 million as Lesy SR removes about 1.3 million cubic metres of wood a year, SITA wrote.
He further claimed that small companies were excluded from the competitions because of “interesting conditions of the competition”. The procurer asked the bidders to have an annual turnover of at least €10 million, a financial reserve at €330,000 and 33 specialised cars for transporting the wood. Moreover, these cars had to meet the emission standard Euro 4 which secures the certain purity of the engine performance, Mičovský added, as reported by SITA.
Mičovský called on both Agriculture Minister Ľubomír Jahnátek and Prime Minister Robert Fico to resolve the case. Fico, however, said that the increase in the price for cubic metre per one kilometre is only five cents. Based on Mičovský’s calculations, even this sum would increase the price of transporting the wood by €6 million, SITA wrote.
According to Lesy SR, Mičovský’s accusations are based on incomplete and inaccurate information. Rezek explained the company wanted to find strong, responsible and stable business partners who can, regarding their economic position in the market, secure the transport of wood with vehicles of high quality with minimal impact on the environment. He also said that the final price of the order is generated by the competition, SITA reported.
Rezek considers the price appropriate. Moreover, he asked why Mičovský assumes that the small companies would transport the wood for cheaper.
Source: SITA
Compiled by Radka Minarechová from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
