Finance Minister Dušan Mramor today presented a list of five names to be nominated for membership on the Slovenia Sovereign Holding supervisory board—chosen out of 47 candidates by a panel of experts. However, Mramor intends to submit his own list of candidates to the government. He will only partially follow the recommendations of the panel, but he did not reveal the names of his own candidates.

According to the law on the Slovenia Sovereign Holding, the panel of experts can present a list of candidates, but the Minister can amend or change it, Mramor said, adding that he plans to take advantage of that rule. If the Finance Minister chooses to modify the list, the law also stipulates that he has to reveal the process by which his candidates were chosen.

Delo reveals names of candidates
Daily Delo today reports, quoting “unofficial but reliable information”, that the panel of experts picked the following candidates: Andrej Polenec (long-time boss and owner of Iskratel), Alenka Podbevšek (economist and state auditor, formerly employed by Deloitte & Touche), Jože Bajuk (former member of the board of directors of Interenergo and a member of the supervisory board of Pivovarna Laško), Andrej Andoljšek(chief executive of Gorenjska banka), and Englishman Simon Felker.

According to Radio Slovenia, Bajuk and Felker do not meet the requirements for this post (10 years of experience serving on the boards of comparable companies).

The coalition now demands that Mramor choose three new candidates, otherwise the nomination process could be repeated. The Slovenia Sovereign Holding manages billions of euros worth of state-owned assets. The parties also demand that party quotas be met when appointing supervisors. These quotas were not taken into consideration when the first list was compiled.

Parties dissatisfied
SMC deputy group head Simona Kustec Lipicer told Delo that the aforementioned list of names is not entirely correct. SMC and the Social Democrats (SD) said they could not decide on whether to support the candidates until the final list is published. Social Democrats deputy group leader Matjaž Han stressed that it is hard to comment on the issue when presented with a ‘take-it-or-leave-it’ offer. “We are being held hostage by the legislation and, in a way, by the panel of experts,” he warned. The SD is not thrilled with this particular selection process.

According to Delo, Polenec could also be removed from the list because he has allegedly been charged for abuse of office. He is suspected of foul play in a management buyout of Merkur.