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Galko: There Are Probably More Corrupt Officials Working at Ministry
Thursday 30 December 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, December 30 (TASR) - The two officials at the Defence Ministry who have been accused of bribery in connection with tenders carried out when the ministry was under the remit of Smer-SD weren't the only ones conducting illegal activities, head of the Defence Ministry press department Ivan Rudolf told TASR on Thursday.
"Of course we're glad that finally somebody will be held accountable for criminal activities, but we have to aim higher. I believe that our police as well as the Office for the Fight Against Corruption will be able to prove the guilt of those who are now pretending that they haven't a clue about anything. That includes any politician who is shown to have had anything to do with such practices," said current minister Lubomir Galko.
Galko said that several specially-created centres of power emerged within the ministry. These centres enjoyed concentrated powers that allowed them to plan, legally manage and announce tenders, run the tenders and increase the finances concerned all by themselves. The centres also signed contracts unbeknown to anybody else and were able to sign contracts after the deadlines expired. They were divided up in a way that meant that the system itself inspired corruption.
"It seems that the system most probably worked like this: you give an envelope, you get a commission. We should ask the Smer-SD party, which controlled the ministry politically, who created such a system and why, who approved it and where the money went," said Galko.
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