The chairman of the Christian Democratic party (KDH) Jan Figeľ said at a press briefing on Tuesday that Slovakia’s current single-party government has brought back some of the practices seen during the country’s time under socialism. Figeľ referred to a proposal drafted by the leading SMER-SD party which aims to broaden the situations under which it is possible to expropriate private property.
“This bill carries with it a couple of not-so-much question marks but rather bold exclamation points,” said the KDH chair. “First off, it puts the clock back to pre-1989, when private property was suppressed and not respected. It is absurd to entertain the notion that not only a highway but also an administrative building or public service building should be grounds for expropriation from now on. Secondly, there's no guarantee that once “public interest” fades away, the land or real estate won't be given to party supporters for a very cheap and advantageous price in what is less than the public’s interest”. 'No to the Oil Pipeline', a Civil Association, joined Figeľ in his outspoken criticism, claiming that the amendment is tailor-made for the Bratislava Schwechat Pipeline project. “The amendment is aimed at helping Transpetrol and OMV build a pipeline across Bratislava simply due to the fact that the investment exceeds €100 million,” said the association's administrative board chairman Miroslav Dragun, who believes that the pipeline project flies in the face of not only the land-use plan of Bratislava but also that of Bratislava region as well. “It's beyond comprehension why such a serious piece of legislation was submitted by MPs but not submitted for comments,” he added.
