President Kiska Pressures Culture Minister To Apologise For Attacks On George Soros

George Soros Andrej Kiska

Bratislava, March 21 (CTK) – Lubica Lassakova (Smer-Social Democracy), who was nominated for culture minister in the possible new Slovak government, today apologised for her recent statement that American financier George Soros influenced the development in postcommunist countries.

 

Being the head of a regional branch of the senior government Smer-SD, Lassakova indicated earlier this week that Soros was behind the massive anti-government demonstrations.

 

“It was a rather unfortunate statement, probably made under the pressure of the latest events,” Lassakova told journalists after her meeting with President Andrej Kiska.

 

She said she moved from the small regional politics to the big politics within a few hours.

 

Lassakova also apologised for saying that the Slovak nonprofit sector had too much money. She recently said the NGOs were too rich with regard to their officially stated sources and that they seemed to be funded from overseas.

 

“I apologise very much for this statement. This is not what I think,” she said today.

 

Slovak NGOs said her statements about nongovernmental groups were an attack against independent culture and the civic sector.

 

Lassakova also said today that the Slovak television and radio might become state institutions. She said the best model of their functioning seems to be something between state institutions and their present operation as public broadcasters.

 

Two weeks ago, Prime Minister and Smer-SD leader Robert Fico criticised Kiska for meeting Soros last year and he indirectly linked Soros with Kiska’s call for early elections or a government reshuffle.

 

Lassakova told daily Dennik N earlier this week that Soros played games and succeeded, although many say how could such an old man in the USA control the developments in Slovakia.

 

Last week, Fico resigned as prime minister amid big demonstrations and the threatening disintegration of Smer-SD’s government coalition with the Slovak National Party (SNS) and Most-Hid in the wake of the murder of a journalist who had pointed to suspected links between ruling parties and the mafia.

 

Kiska entrusted Deputy Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini (Smer-SD) with the formation of a new government. On Tuesday, he rejected the proposed lineup of a new cabinet, objecting mainly against the new choice of interior minister. Pellegrini submitted a second proposal to him this morning. Kiska plans to meet the four new candidates for ministers who are not members of the outgoing one and also have talks with outgoing Health Minister Tomas Drucker who was proposed for interior minister.