Sutaj-Estok: NKU Confirmed Failings in Ministry's Automobile Repair Company

Bratislava, 21 April (TASR) - An audit by the Supreme Audit Office (NKU) has confirmed serious shortcomings in the IT Division of the Interior Ministry's Automobile Repair Company founded under the ministry's previous leadership, with the audit findings pointing to a lack of strategic planning, deficiencies in project management and negative financial impacts on the company's performance, Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Voice-SD) stated on Tuesday. According to NKU, the IT Division was set up without a detailed analysis and a realistic business plan. Therefore, the project aimed at having an in-house provider of IT services proved to be unsustainable in the long run and generated losses throughout the entire period of its existence. In 2023, the loss amounted to more than €2.15 million, with the total financial impact of the project reaching €2.86 million. "NKU's findings clearly show that the IT Division project was neither sufficiently prepared nor managed, as it was lacking basic analytical documents, control mechanisms, and financial management," stated Sutaj Estok. Furthermore, NKU also noted that, without the IT Division, the company would have reported positive financial results during the years under review, as its standard activities involving vehicle servicing and maintenance for the ministry were stable and economically viable. According to Sutaj Estok, NKU explicitly stated that despite unfavourable forecasts in 2023, extraordinary bonuses amounting to €50,000 were paid to the chairman and two members of the board during the summer of that year, while the costs associated with the 13th and 14th salaries increased by almost €515,000 in 2023. Due to unfavourable developments, the Interior Ministry, as the sole shareholder, had to stabilise the company in 2024 also by increasing the share capital so that it could continue providing services for the state. "Our priority was to stop the negative trend and set up the operation so that it could be sustainable in the future," said the company's general director Lukas Hunara, adding that as part of the restructuring efforts undertaken by the new leadership, which took over in 2024, the loss-making IT activities have been closed, with the digitisation division retained as the only profitable business. In his response, former interior minister Roman Mikulec ('Slovakia' party/2020-23) pointed to the positive financial performance of the company, including its IT Division, reaching €19.92 million in 2021, €25.45 million in 2022 and €32.34 million in 2023. "As we haven't seen the full report from NKU, we will not respond to purposeful evaluations cherry-picked by the Interior Ministry's kindermanagement," remarked Mikulec. [The term "kindermanagement" refers to the young age of the managers involved - ed. note]. If Sutaj Estok had not fired all the skilled people across various units of the company, they could have enjoyed equally positive performance, added Mikulec. jrg