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It was not easy for commission members to agree on how to implement the court decision that the subsidies belong to the party, and this time, once this issue was postponed at the CEC meeting.
At the meeting, CEC financier Danguolė Jakštienė proposed to committee members to increase the estimate of credits, which would allow funds to be transferred to the Labor Party in accordance with the government resolution.
“We, as the appropriations manager, have to put it in, we have to ask the Ministry of Finance to put that money in the budget for us,” he said.
Commissioner Olga Kilkinova said a separate commission decision is not needed, it cannot be formal for commission members to simply raise their hands as needed.
“The CEC has not been given the right to challenge the government’s resolution,” he said, noting that the government had previously approved the allocation of funds to the Labor Party, as the court had previously ruled that they had not been paid. subsidies to the Labor Party.
Photo by Josvydas Elinskas / 15min / Andrius Puksas and Laura Matjošaitytė
Commissioner Tauras Rutkūnas noted that this is not about awarding a grant: the money that has been discussed is compensation for expropriated funds from the state.
“It is not a grant, and now it seems that from the discussion we are deciding on a grant,” he emphasized.
Proposed to transfer funds in November, already after the elections
Commissioner Aistė Žilinskienė opposed: the Government resolution refers to subsidies. He stressed that he believed that this money should be transferred when the subsidies are distributed to the parties, that is, in November, after the elections.
“That would be fair and just,” he said.
But the financier disagreed, saying it’s about misappropriated funds, not a grant, so there’s really no need to wait until November.
He stressed the need to revise the estimate, receive money from the Ministry of Finance, and transfer it to the Labor Party. The financier pointed out that the funds had already been assigned by the Government to the CEC, but that they had to be taken legally.
Photo by Sigismund Gedvila / 15min / Aistė Žilinskienė
“We have received the credits by resolution of the Government, they are intended,” emphasized D. Jakštienė.
Commission President L. Matjošaitytė emphasized that the loan manager may dispose of the money allotted to him. According to her, the Government Resolution does not establish that the CCA can dispose of 1.8 million. euros
“Perhaps it is easier to inform the Government that the CEC cannot implement the decision to disburse the funds to the Ministry of Finance. But while this question is with us, we must speak in some way, not throw it out like hot potatoes. We have a clear amount of credits each year is in the estimate. The money we are talking about is once an appropriation, and today it is only a refund, “he reasoned.
Finally, the CCA approved the increase in estimate by a protocol decision.
It took a long time to claim a grant
According to the BNS, the CCA had awarded grants to the Labor Party in 2007 and 2008, but in the course of the “black book” case, the courts suspended their payment and then returned them to the budget.
According to the news agency, in 2018 the “employees” petitioned the CEC to repay these grants, but after acknowledging the party’s serious violations of the law due to false financial data submitted in 2004-2006, the commission retroactively changed decisions on grants awarded.
The “workers” have been arguing in court for several years about unpaid subsidies. The courts that examined the “Employees” claims upheld the CEC’s previous decisions regarding Labor Party grants in 2007 and 2008, totaling 1.8 million. euros
Following the court ruling, on July 1 the Government made a decision to allocate such an amount from the Government Reserve to the Labor Party at the request of the CEC.
However, at the last meeting, the CEC did not make a decision on the grant award, as there were differences of opinion on what the commission could do about it. Some commission members said nothing more needed to be done: decisions about the grant award were made earlier and the government approved the allocation of funds.
At that time, CCA President Laura Matjošaitytė said the issue needed to be considered, because without the commission’s decision, the Finance Ministry would have no legal basis to pay money to the Labor Party.
Lawyer Lina Zubovienė, representing the Labor Party, requested that the matter be no longer postponed and that the question be assigned or not designated, no longer.
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