Korcok Confirms PS Payments Sent Via His Wife's Firm

Bratislava, 30 July (TASR) - Ivan Korcok, vice-chair of the opposition's Progressive Slovakia (PS) party, confirmed on Thursday that he receives remuneration for his work in the party equivalent to an MP's salary and that the payments are invoiced through a company currently solely owned and managed by his wife. Korcok responded this way to findings by the news website Aktuality.sk, which reported that PS has paid tens of thousands of euros to Korcok through his wife's company. Korcok said he has chosen this arrangement because he decided that, as a politician, he did not want to be associated with any private business. He therefore withdrew from the couple's jointly owned firm in February last year. However, he continued working for the company as a family member, which he said was the only reason why invoicing continued through his wife's business. "My only objective was to ensure that I was not associated with any private business. In the interests of transparency and to dispel any future doubts, I will register as a sole trader in the coming days, through which I will receive my remuneration from PS directly," Korcok said. Aktuality.sk reported that Progressive Slovakia paid almost €70,000 last year to a company solely owned and managed by Korcok's wife. According to the website, PS said it used the family-owned limited liability company to pay its vice-chair for his work. mf