KDH: Prosecutors Specialising in Corruption Crimes Good Move

Bratislava, 7 January (TASR) - The opposition Christian Democrats (KDH) welcome the decision of the Prosecutor General's (PG) Office to set up specialised departments at both the PG's Office and regional prosecutors' offices to combat corruption, according to KDH vice-chair and former justice minister Viliam Karas, TASR reported on Wednesday based on information provided by KDH's communications department. However, this will not become an efficient tool without the Interior Ministry and the police changing their approach fundamentally, warned Karas. "Prosecutors specialising in corruption crimes is a step in the right direction, but this alone will not change much unless the interior minister wakes up and the police start acting," said Karas. He recalled that KDH already pressed for setting up a special unit within the PG's Office to combat corruption and organised crime when presenting their priorities for changes to the Constitution in the summer of 2024. "This proposal didn't gain support in Parliament, therefore we appreciate today's decision by the PG's Office to set up specialised departments," stressed Karas. "Prosecutors can only take action once they receive evidence from the police. If the police do not actively seek out corruption and are not able to document it at the time it is taking place, no results will be delivered. Corruption is rarely proven after it has already occurred," added Karas. Prosecutor-General Maros Zilinka has announced on a social network that the position of prosecutors specialising in corruption crimes has been established at regional prosecutors' offices and the serious crime department of the PG's Office. According to him, this means the formal completion of the process of measures taken without pause to ensure that the prosecution service's powers in corruption-related crimes are conducted effectively and that the prosecution service's tasks stemming from international agreements and conventions are fulfilled. jrg