Monitor: Kalinak Sees No Reason for Lajcak's Dismissal as Adviser to PM Fico

(STVR, 'O 5 minut 12', 16 November) Speaking on STVR's discussion programme 'O 5 minut 12' (Five Minutes to Twelve) on Sunday, chief advisor to the prime minister and MEP Erik Kalinak said he doesn't see any reason for former foreign affairs minister (2012-20) Miroslav Lajcak to step down as adviser to Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) after the coalition Slovak National Party (SNS) demanded his dismissal. Kalinak believes that the communication Lajcak allegedly had with late US financier Jeffrey Epstein does not indicate any ethical breach or criminal conduct on his part. "SNS leader Andrej Danko has had a systematic problem with Lajcak since when he was foreign minister. He has every right to feel that way, it's his politics. Calling on us to take the steps he considers correct is typical of him. I personally don't see any reason for doing so," said Kalinak. His opponent on the show, opposition MP and Progressive Slovakia (PS) caucus chair Zuzana Mesterova considers the situation serious and thinks that Lajcak should explain the affair to the public. "It's not only that Lajcak shouldn't enjoy the trust of the prime minister; this should actually be the end of his career in the diplomatic and civil service,” she said, asking the competent authorities to investigate any potential conduct that may have caused harm to Slovakia. The debate also touched on the resignation of Vice-premier for the Recovery Plan and a Knowledge-based Economy Peter Kmec (Voice-SD) over the results of science, research and innovation calls. Kalinak thanked him for his work but admitted there were doubts surrounding the call. However, in his opinion, the communication on this issue was mishandled. "Unfortunately, what we saw was a press conference by a state secretary standing there all by herself, not inspiring confidence in the tender within the entire coalition," said Kalinak. Mesterova argued that the problem was with the tender itself rather than communication. She recalled that PS had filed a criminal complaint in the matter. "The problem with this government is that its ministers and its nominees are clearly passing public funds to their own people," she said, adding that Kmec's resignation is not enough. She also called for the dismissal of other ministers and pointed to additional suspicious tenders. jrg