At the time when the scandal concerning the former Minister of Public Administration and the tender for NGOs, where her former business partner was the winner of the tender, had barely died down, a new one had already broken out concerning the purchase of low-performance computers at the Ministry of Digital Transformation, headed by Emilija Stojmenova Duh, at a cost of several million euros of public funds. Despite certain indications as to whom the computers were likely to go, it is still unclear who will actually get them in the end! The purchase of the computers has also come under the scrutiny of the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (KPK).
Two and a half months ago, the web portal Preiskovalno.si (Investigative.si) revealed that the Ministry of Digital Transformation had spent almost 6.5 million euros (€6,472,667.50 including VAT) on the purchase of 13,000 low-performance laptops. The public funds were divided between four companies – Unistar, Lamcom, Acord-92 and Gambit Trade. Each of the companies was allocated 1.6 million euros for the purchase of 3,250 laptops. However, there was a great deal of confusion regarding how the public funds were spent and who would be the intended recipients of the computers, which are not suitable for serious work due to the inferior quality of the graphics cards and older processors.
The Ministry of Digital Transformation replied to a question from the aforementioned portal that the computers were intended to equip kindergartens and primary schools, but the Ministry of Education knew nothing about the whole thing. Despite the Ministry of Digital Transformation explaining that the computers were intended to equip kindergartens and primary schools, Minister Emilija Stojmenova Duh insisted that the computers purchased would be intended for children from underprivileged families. The story did not end there, however, as an article was inserted in the August 2023 Act Determining Intervention Measures for Recovery from the Floods and Landslides, under which the computers would also be distributed to those affected by the floods.
It is still unclear who will receive the computers in the end
Two and a half months after the revelation of a story that suggests irrational use of public funds, it is still unclear where the computers will go, as the Preiskovalno.si portal has once again found out. Although the Ministry of Digital Transformation received the computers on the 21st of November 2023, instead of the latter already being in the hands of the intended users, they are stuck in storage. When the Ministry was asked about the distribution of the computers, they responded that “they are not in a position to determine the groups of recipients of the computers or to decide on the allocation.” It was further explained that the Public Scholarship, Development, Disability and Maintenance Fund is in the process of setting up a mechanism to ensure access to computer equipment.
When the portal asked the Fund in question about the distribution of computers, or whether it was underway, they were told that this required a legal basis, specifically the regulation on the management of the mechanism for ensuring access to computer equipment. It was further clarified that the Ministry of Digital Transformation was still working on this regulation. Since the reply is more than telling and shows that the Ministry is misleading the public, the portal decided to forward the reply of the Public Scholarship, Development, Disability and Maintenance Fund to the Ministry. However, there was no word from the latter as to when the regulation would be ready. Truly unbelievable.
The SDS party calls for an urgent meeting of the two committees
According to the largest opposition party, the Slovenian Democratic Party (Slovenska demokratska stranka – SDS), Minister Stojmenova Duh, “in an attempt to cover up her dirty dealings even involved the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, and even the Public Scholarship, Development, Disability and Maintenance Fund of the Republic of Slovenia in the affair. Meanwhile, almost all of the 13,000 laptops are still unallocated,” and there are also doubts about the quality of the computers purchased for 6.5 million euros, which is why the SDS party’s parliamentary group decided to convene an urgent joint meeting of the Committee on the Interior, Public Administration and Local Self-Government and the Committee on Education, Science and Youth.
The request for a joint urgent meeting is more than justified, according to the SDS parliamentary group, because “it is time for Minister Stojmenova Duh to stop making contradictory and misleading explanations and excuses about the non-transparent and unsustainable purchase.”
The SDS party’s parliamentary group proposes that the following conclusions be adopted by the Committees:
1. The Committee on the Interior, Public Administration and Local Self-Government and the Committee on Education, Science and Youth call on the Prime Minister Dr Robert Golob to consider whether or not Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh is still the right person for the position of Minister of Digital Transformation.
2. The Committee on the Interior, Public Administration and Local Self-Government and the Committee on Education, Science and Youth call on the Ministry of Digital Transformation to prepare in 30 days a complete and, above all, truthful report on the purchase of 13,000 laptops.
3. The Committee on the Interior, Public Administration and Local Self-Government and the Committee on Education, Science and Youth call on the Ministry of Digital Transformation to prepare in 30 days an overview of realised coalition commitments in the area of digitalisation with detailed explanations and examples.
The purchase has also come under scrutiny by the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption
The Commission for the Prevention of Corruption recently confirmed media outlet N1’s report that the Ministry of Digital Transformation is conducting a preliminary examination procedure in relation to the purchase of computers. The procedure was initiated as a result of a complaint received, the Slovenian Press Agency reports. The preliminary examination is being carried out to verify all suspected breaches of the Integrity and Prevention of Corruption Act.
The Commission for the Prevention of Corruption has not yet answered the question of who exactly is under investigation, as they will be able to talk about this when/if an investigation is launched. According to N1, the Commission has addressed several questions to the Ministry, asking for details of the decision to tender for the purchase, the reasons for splitting the tender into four parts, analyses of the need for such computers, and whether and when schools and kindergartens were contacted. All of this, of course, must be accompanied by the necessary supporting documents.
