SNS to Address Problem with Kuffa's Appointment as Minister at Presidium Meeting

Bratislava, 5 November (TASR) - The junior coalition Slovak National Party (SNS) will deal with the issues surrounding the appointment of a new environment minister and Independent MP Roman Malatinec's decision to join former environment minister Tomas Taraba's project at its presidium meeting on Thursday, SNS caucus head Roman Michelko has told the media in Parliament. SNS has nominated incumbent Environment Ministry State Secretary Filip Kuffa for the post of environment minister. "Quite a lot has happened, so we'll be addressing the current issues, namely Malatinec's move to join Taraba's team and, of course, the problems surrounding the appointment of our minister," said Michelko. However, he said that he doesn't know what the outcome of the talks regarding the ministerial appointment will be. He declined to say whether anyone else than Filip Kuffa is being considered for the post. "All these matters will be known following the presidium meeting," he stated, adding that the meeting will be held in the afternoon. Kuffa is SNS's nominee for the post of environment minister since the party's dispute with Taraba escalated. Taraba left his ministerial post after the opposition, with the help of SNS, voted for his ouster in Parliament. President Peter Pellegrini asked Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) to reconsider Kuffa's nomination for the environment minister post, asking him to put forward a new proposal. He defended this by pointing to reports in the media suggesting the possibility of improper conduct on the part of one of the organisations under the Environment Ministry, the potential mismanagement of Slovakia's assets, and other similar allegations. The premier insisted on Kuffa's nomination following an agreement with SNS leader Andrej Danko. The head of state subsequently decided to refer the proposal to appoint Kuffa as environment minister to the Constitutional Court, and he won't appoint him until he receives the court's interpretation. He wants the court to establish a framework for the president for appointing members of the government. ko/df