Minister of Agriculture Jozef Bires rejects any allegations of him demanding information from ex-interior minister Ivan Simko about a recent police crackdown at Bires' ministry in conflict with the law.
"In late June, following a police crackdown at the Ministry of Agriculture and organisations under its aegis, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Jozef Bires publicly called on then-interior minister Ivan Simko to look into the appropriateness of the crackdown. This was motivated by an effort to protect farmers and make sure that they won't lose almost €1.4 billion, due to be paid by the Agricultural Payment Agency," reads the press release by the Agriculture Ministry.
Prime Minister Ludovit Odor doesn't find it problematic that Minister of Agriculture Jozef Bires publicly demanded, as well as in a meeting with ex-interior minister Ivan Simko and police chief Stefan Hamran, an explanation of the police crackdown at Bires' ministry. The Government Office press department informed that the Prime Minister finds important that Agriculture Minister did not ask for any information that would go beyond the lawful scope and his actions were not guided by an effort to interfere with police work.
The press department reiterated that there were several reasons why Odor had asked President Zuzana Caputova to take away ex-interior minister Ivan Simko's mandate in the caretaker Government.
Earlier in the day, OLaNO leader Igor Matovic demanded Bires' dismissal over Simko's statement, according to which Bires had asked for a meeting with Simko and Hamran to inquire about the police crackdown at his ministry.
Source: TASR
