“This is a complete lie and fabrication, and it is no coincidence that these claims have been brought forth now. Today we have officially demanded that the television channel that broadcasted this apologise and present evidence for the claims,” asserted Prime Minister Janez Janša this afternoon, responding to the accusations made by the Finnish television station that he had accepted a bribe from the Finnish company Patria. He added that the whole story was totally implausible. “In addition to this, no documents were presented during the entire broadcast. Today we have still not seen any evidence for these absurd claims. Because there is no evidence,” concluded the Prime Minister.
(Photo: Kristina Kosec/Bobo)
He explained that the decision to purchase AMV (armoured modular vehicle) 8x8 models had already been made by the previous Government, and on the basis of this the Ministry of Defence had carried out the appropriate procedures. “I myself was not involved in these procedures, because the decision was not made by me or the Government, and I was not acquainted with it. I am not familiar with the contract, I have never seen it or signed it, and I have not told the Minister to sign it or not to sign it. This was a decision that had definitely been adopted at government level during the previous Government’s term of office. All procedures were carried out by those responsible,” clarified the Prime Minister in denying the allegations.
(Photo: Kristina Kosec/Bobo)
He also refuted allegations that he had ordered the Minister of the Interior to stop the police investigation, saying that he doubted that the Minister would have actually done something like that. The transcript of the programme broadcasted by the Finnish television channel indicates that the accusations of bribery come from Slovenia and that, in fact, they had been “put into the mouths of the journalists”. In this respect, he pointed to the deputy of Borut Pahor’s Social Democrats, Milan M. Cvikl, who models himself on his party colleague Anton Rop, a well known figure who had plotted at the time of the Depala Vas and Vič-Holmec affairs and now uses his position to discredit Slovenian authorities abroad, as well as people from the competitor company that had not been chosen in the public tender for the purchase of the 8x8 armoured vehicles. “If someone claims: ‘People close to the top are involved,’ he must be able to enumerate them. Otherwise these people do not exist. Mr Kos did not give their names. However, according to my information, he very much bandied these names about in Finland,” said the Prime Minister.
(Photo: Kristina Kosec/Bobo)
PM Janez Janša firmly denied knowing or cooperating with the persons mentioned in this broadcast – Cekuta, Wolf and Riedl – and added that he had never conducted any business with them. “I find most absurd the claims that these are people who are somehow close to the Slovenian Democratic Party. As far as I can remember – and I do not wish to stoop to the same level as some people did in this broadcast – these names were appearing in the '90s, when the disputed procurement of weapons and military equipment in Israel was being investigated. At least some of these names,” said the Prime Minister.
(Photo: Kristina Kosec/Bobo)
He added that even if only an attempt at corruption in the purchase of the 8x8 armoured vehicles was proven, the contract with Patria would be terminated immediately. Furthermore, he expressed his regret that only days before the elections in Slovenia we are discussing the content of a broadcast by a foreign television and what somebody from Slovenia had put in the mouths of the Finnish journalists. The Prime Minister would prefer that we speak about what Slovenian political parties are offering for the future of Slovenia in terms of their programmes and human resources. “This is missing in this campaign, which is really a shame. Obviously some have concluded that their programmes are bad and human resources potential poor, and that in this respect they cannot compete with the present coalition or the Slovenian Democratic Party, and therefore they indirectly or in some other way bring up any topic whatsoever,” stressed the Prime Minister.
