BRATISLAVA, October 27, (WEBNOVINY) — Prime Minister Iveta Radicova (SDKU-DS) claims that vacancies at the Cabinet Office are not filled in by political nominees. “No political nominations were or will be made at the Cabinet Office,” she told a news conference following the meeting of her Cabinet on Wednesday. It was her answer to a written appeal of the quartet of parliamentary deputies, members of the Ordinary People Group who made it to parliament on the SaS party list. The deputies led by Igor Matovic urged the prime minister to disclose information on all nominations in the state administration, including concrete posts, names, party affiliation and the method of selection. The deputies explained that their initiative is here to gradually depoliticize the state administration. Radicova said that she cannot present any key based on which posts at the Cabinet Office are distributed. “We rather have to cope with a problem to find professional, top-quality people, with language skills and willing to work in the state administration for a pay set in the respective pay scale. This is my problems I am dealing with,” said the prime minister. She does not see a problem with revealing details on occupying post at further government departments and state-run companies. She told Matovic that it would have been enough if he had turned in a standard way to the Coalition Council and he would certainly have gained this information.
Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Jan Figel (KDH) said that the selection of people to serve in the state administration is up to ministries or the Cabinet, which has set criteria and procedures for individual areas. He told Matovic to communicate more with the chairman of his deputy club respectively communicate with the coalition through his party SaS, as he is its part and should predominantly resolve topics within the SaS faction, of which he is a member.
Agriculture Minister Zsolt Simon said that they would deal with the appeal of the deputy quartet at a meeting of the MOST-HID leadership. As for his ministry, he explained that the department holds regular contests for posts and only people who met the criteria submitted to the Cabinet and approved by it pass these contests. Simon did not comment on the issue regarding other departments and offices controlled by his party MOST-HID.
SITA