BRATISLAVA, March 2, (WEBNOVINY) — The Cabinet passed on Wednesday the draft revision to the Regulation of Network Industries Act, which suggests taking away the competence of the Regulatory Board at the Regulatory Office for Network Industries (URSO) to propose and recommend the recall of candidates for URSO top posts. Based on the draft tailored by the Economy Ministry, Parliament should appoint the URSO chairperson and his/her deputy based on the proposal of the Parliamentary Committee for Economy, Construction and Transport. The ministry also suggested that deputies debate the changes in expedited legislative proceedings, but eventually withdrew this proposal from the Cabinet session.
State Secretary at the Economy Ministry Martin Chren opines that approval of the law would bolster parliamentarianism in Slovakia. “We are really convinced that the unlawful situation now in effect here, in which one person serves as both chairman of the office and chairman of the Regulatory Board, needs to be changed. We place the appointment of URSO officials in the parliament’s hands. It is the most democratic system we have and there is no basis for accusing us of expediency,” said Chren in reference to the Cabinet-approved draft.
The state secretary explained that based on the objections of ministers, the ministry withdrew the proposal for expedited legislative proceeding. “We do not want to abuse this institute, so the law will be processed in a standard manner,” added Chren. The law should take effect as of June 1 of this year.
The board has already picked candidates for the posts of URSO chair and its deputy. As of February 17, Dusan Bernath was to have assumed the top post and Vladimir Cepka to have become his deputy. Spokesman for the regulator Miroslav Luptak has noted that the board has submitted the nominations to the Cabinet but the ministers have not yet dealt with them.
According to spokesman for the Economy Ministry Robert Merva, the department had forged the revision blueprint before the board selected the candidates. This legislative draft is meant to contribute to the gradual implementation of the third energy liberalization package, so that systemic failures in the functioning of the office do not occur in the future.
The current leadership of the Ministry of Transport criticized the empty post of the URSO head before. The ministry objected to the fact that the then-chairman of the Regulatory Board, Jozef Holiencik, was entrusted with running the office, emphasizing that he occupied two positions for almost four years. The ministry underscored that the independent operation of the regulatory office thus could not have been ensured.
SITA