MIRRI Developments Rejects PS's Claims Regarding Rental Housing Call

Bratislava, 30 October (TASR) - A company called MIRRI Developments rejects the misleading claims made by representatives of the opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party regarding the terms of a call for tenders for purchasing land and development projects intended for rental and affordable housing, the communications department of the Investment, Regional Development and Informatisation Ministry (MIRRI) told TASR in response to comments made by MP Jan Hargas (PS) earlier on Friday. The terms of the call for tenders were published in advance and clearly set out which documents interested parties were required to submit and how individual bids would be assessed, said the ministry. "Jan Hargas has repeatedly claimed that interested parties had to obtain an expert valuation within just a few days. However, this claim doesn't correspond to the published conditions. Article 5 of the call for tenders allowed the value of the property to be demonstrated by an expert valuation or another document proving its value, and this document could be up to 12 months old. Furthermore, according to Article 7, if an applicant didn't have any of the required information or mandatory annexes at the time when they submitted a bid, they were able to replace it with a statutory declaration and supplement the relevant document no later than 14 days after the bid was submitted," said the ministry's communications department. The Investment Ministry further stated that PS's claim that projects without building permission couldn't meet the conditions of the call for proposals is equally untrue. The call for proposals explicitly allowed for development projects in progress to be submitted, including project documentation, as well as plots of land at various stages of preparation. According to the ministry, the purpose of the call for proposals was to select the most suitable plots of land and projects for further developing rental and affordable housing, based on pre-defined criteria. These criteria took into account not only readiness for planning permission, but also location, access to utility networks, economic viability, compliance with the area plan, and social and environmental aspects. MIRRI Developments is proceeding in accordance with the published rules. The suitability of individual bids is determined by expert assessment and a points-based evaluation according to the established criteria, not by political statements or self-serving interpretations. "We expect PS representatives to base their allegations on the actual wording of the call for tenders, which is publicly available, and not to mislead the public with claims that aren't supported by its content," added the ministry's communications department. Hargas told a press conference on Friday that Migal is set to funnel tens of millions of euros earmarked from the state budget for rental housing into companies with ties to oligarchs. PS has already filed a criminal complaint over a so-called notice-board tender that lasted just four working days during the holiday season, said Hargas, adding that PS will now supplement the complaint with new information. am/df