TIS objects to political selection of heads of watchdog authorities

The new heads of watchdog authorities such as the Supreme Audit Office (NKÚ) and the Public Procurement Office (ÚVO) ought to be picked via open selection procedures rather than via political nominations, Transparency International Slovensko (TIS), a political ethics watchdog, said on Tuesday, April 17, as reported by the TASR newswire.

"Unlike Prime Minister Robert Fico, we're convinced that top state officials such as the heads of the Supreme Audit Office (NKÚ) and the Public Procurement Office (ÚVO) should emerge from public selection procedures instead of talks among unidentified associations of employers or behind-the-scenes agreements between political parties," reads the TIS statement.