Progressive Slovakia: Incompatibility of Posts Should Apply More Widely

Bratislava, 18 August (TASR) - The opposition Progressive Slovakia party is proposing that the list of posts deemed incompatible with that of a regional councillor should be expanded, TASR has reported on the basis of an amendment to the act on self-governining regions submitted by MPs Marek Lackovic a Jana Hanuliakova (both PS). According to their proposal, regional councillors would not be able to hold the post of statutory representative or a member of a statutory body in organisations fully/partly funded from the state budget and established by the self-governing region from which the councillors were elected. "In practice, there are situations in which a councillor also serves as the director or a member of the statutory body of an organisation that was directly set up and is financed by the same self-governing region," the MPs explained, indicating a potential conflict of interest because, in this post, the councillor has the power to make decisions about the organisation's activities and its management, while at the same time being able, as member of the regional council, to control and co-decide on its activities. The status quo may thus pose a threat to the impartiality, objectivity, and independence of decision-making processes. The MPs added this could weaken public trust in local government. In the amendment, the MPs also want to clarify the provision that states a councillor post is incompatible with the post of self-governing region employee, suggesting that the law should specify that this requirement applies to the self-governing region in which the councillor has been elected. jrg/df/lin