Takac: NKU Chair Lying about Corruption in Agriculture and Engaging in Politics

      Bratislava, 15 July (TASR) - Head of the Supreme Audit Office (NKU) Lubomir Andrassy is lying about corruption in the agriculture sector, particularly at the Agricultural Payment Agency (PPA), Agriculture Minister Richard Takac (Smer-SD) stated at a press conference on Wednesday, with House Vice-chair Tibor Gaspar (Smer-SD), Agriculture Ministry State Secretary Vladimir Vnuk, and PPA director Marek Cepko in attendance.
        According to Takac and Gaspar, who spoke in response to Andrassy's recent statements to the media, the NKU head has begun to engage in opposition politics.
        "It's absolutely necessary to hold a press conference and tell the truth as it is, when the president of the Supreme Audit Office - an institution that is independent and bound by law - is lying in his interviews. Over the course of a week and a half, chairman Andrassy gave several interviews to select media outlets," stated Takac in response to Andrassy's media statements regarding, for example, the "EU fund mafia at PPA," lost EU funds and the manipulation of calls for proposals at PPA.
        "We agreed that we must hold a press conference and show all of Slovakia how the NKU chairman has sided with the opposition, how he's begun to engage in politics, and how, to a certain extent, he's also undermining this institution," emphasised the agriculture minister.
        Takac noted that Andrassy was nominated for the post of Supreme Audit Office head by the OLaNO party (now the 'Slovakia' party). "He was OLaNO's nominee for this post. And words such as 'mafia' - that's what the opposition says: OLaNO, Progressive Slovakia (PS), all the opposition political parties. There's a mafia here; there's corruption here. He's essentially sided with them [the opposition]. He's started using their rhetoric and has adopted their language. The worst part is that he's the head of the Supreme Audit Office, which is an independent institution," said Takac.
        "So, I don't know if he's repaying some debts for his nomination and election, or if he's already trying to score some brownie points in advance with parties such as OLaNO and Progressive Slovakia - and others - looking ahead to 2028, when the next election will be held. This crosses the line for us," he emphasised.
        "We'll make use of all options: first, we'll file a motion with Parliament; there are relevant committees there that deal with the role, functionality and, above all, the operations of the Supreme Audit Office. We'll also inform European institutions about what's happening in this regard. This is all fabricated," stressed the agriculture minister.

The Supreme Audit Office (NKU) stands by the conclusions of its audits and analytical report on the management of European Union funds, NKU spokesperson Daniela Bolech Dobakova has declared in response to a news conference held by Agriculture Minister Richard Takac and parliamentary vice-chair Tibor Gaspar (both Smer-SD) earlier on Wednesday.
        Takac and Gaspar had reacted to recent media statements by NKU chair Lubomir Andrassy.
        The NKU spokesperson said that the chairman's remarks were based on NKU's long-term audit findings, which point to systemic failures in the protection of public finances, including EU funds. Where there is the suspicion of wrongdoing, NKU refers cases to the law-enforcement authorities.
        Bolech Dobakova underlined that since 2017, under the leadership of former chair Karol Mitrik, NKU has repeatedly warned of a corrupt environment within the Agricultural Payment Agency (PPA), describing it as an institution that should be abolished. She added that the latest audit of PPA, covering the period between 2020-2024, showed that the risks of corruption and fraudulent conduct persist. Similar conclusions have been reached by other national and European institutions. According to the spokesperson, PPA remains under NKU scrutiny.
        She added that attacks on and attempts to undermine independent institutions don't help to resolve public problems but instead weaken trust in state institutions, which is essential for a functioning democracy, the protection of public finances and public prosperity.