Igor Matovič, the leader of the opposition party OĽaNO, came to a press conference last week with transcripts of alleged Viber chats between Martin Glváč, who is Deputy-Speaker of Parliament, and businessman Marian Kočner, who is facing multiple charges of economic crimes and with being a co-perpetrator in the murder of investigative journalist Ján Kuciak. According to the messages, Kočner had his own lackey appointed to the post of Slovak Intelligence Service deputy director and Glváč knew about this. Glváč, who is an MP for the largest governing coalition party Smer, has also supposedly lied when he said that he had not met the businessman since 2012. He rejected the allegations, spoke about filing a criminal complaint and promised to give more information on Tuesday after a meeting of the leadership of the Smer party.
The Parliament was scheduled to hold a special session to discuss the case but not enough MPs managed to show up so it did not take place. Shortly afterwards, flanked by party leader and former Prime Minister Robert Fico, Glváč announced he had decided to keep his post for the time being. "I call on everyone who was in contact with Marian Kočner to relinquish their posts first. Then he will do the same," said Glváč. He added that he had known the businessman for about 20 years but he would not make any comments about his chats with him until law-enforcement bodies take up a public stance. He believes that political contacts with Marian Kočner are being misused in a purpose-built manner exclusively against members of Smer-SD, even though politicians from opposition parties have met him as well.
After expressing his duty as Smer-SD party chairman "to stand by my people in both good and bad times", former Prime Minister Robert Fico spent the rest of the media briefing on attacks against opposition MPs and the journalists. He believes that the same treatment should be given to, for instance, SaS party leader Richard Sulík, who met Marian Kočner at the latter's house, plus OĽaNO leader Igor Matovič for his "tax fraud" and former Slovak president and current leader of the party "Za ľudí" Andrej Kiska. The Opposition keeps on urging the Deputy Speaker of Parliament Martin Glváč (Smer-SD) to "muster up a modicum of honour" and resign from his post.
