BRATISLAVA, December 8, (WEBNOVINY) — Interior Minister and KDH Deputy Chairman Daniel Lipsic rushed to dismiss the statements of Prosecutor General Dobroslav Trnka, who said earlier on Wednesday that somebody exerted pressure on the investigator working on the case of SMER-SD party funding. Transparency of financing the former ruling party has been questioned after SME daily published an audio recording before elections in June, on which a voice similar to that of party leader Robert Fico speaks about at least SKK 75 million (EUR 2.49 million) from secret donors poured in the party outside its official accounting.
Nobody from the Interior Ministry’s management nor anybody else has exerted pressure on the investigator, the prosecutor general lies,” the minister told journalists. Minister Lipsic said he had met with the investigator during questioning because it was him who has lodged a criminal complaint in the matter of SMER dubious financing. State Secretary Maros Zilinka says he did not meet with the investigator and demands an apology from the Prosecutor General. “Although I am closest to her, I did not speak with her either, ” said Police Corps President Jaroslav Spisiak at the news conference.
OKS party chairman and ruling coalition MP Peter Zajac reacted to Trnka’s statements as well. He said that at his today’s news conference that Dobroslav Trnka has definitively entered the political struggle for the post of prosecutor general. His statements addressed to Interior Minister Lipsic, State Secretary Zilinka and Police Corps President Spisiak overshot the mark falling behind the neutral performance of his office. Zajac insists that Trnka definitively disqualified himself in the battle for the post.
The minister and police president called a news conference to react to words of Prosecutor General Dobroslav Trnka who insists the investigator dealing with the case of a wiretap of voice similar to the voice of opposition SMER-SD chairman Robert Fico, was under pressure. According to Trnka the investigator was ready to dismiss the case. “… Because the evidence and interrogation, which were carried out in the presence of the special prosecutor show that it is nothing but a delusion,” said Trnka at a news conference on Wednesday. “Ask the investigator whether she was visited by Dr. Lipsic (the Minister of Interior — SITA note), by Dr. Zilinka (Interior Ministry State Secretary — SITA note) or by Dr. Spisiak (police President — SITA note). Ask those people, under what pressure they work,” said Trnka, noting that it was not him who devastated either the police or the Slovak judiciary. He did however not disclose any further details, claiming he had not seen the decision of the investigator. He only has a verbal information from the special prosecutor.
Shortly before the parliamentary election in June, the SME daily published an audio recording showing that secret donors probably poured at least 75 million Slovak crowns into the SMER-SD party several years ago, bypassing the official accounts.
SITA