One of the hottest topics of the week was the State Audit Office’s findings about economically unjustified—and in some cases even illegal—spending from the Port Development Fund. Whether this case will serve as a lesson on how not to manage public funds, BNN asked political analyst and “Mediju tilts” co-owner Filips Rajevskis.
“This could be called a textbook case that clearly illustrates what is happening in our state administration. While the government claims it cannot reduce expenses by even 5% annually, senseless waste of money continues without concern,” said the political analyst.
When asked whether this case might affect public perception of government spending, Rajevskis answered affirmatively. “The public and business community are increasingly demanding that the state apparatus become more logical and reasonable in terms of financial expenditure. People intuitively sense that this is not an isolated incident—there are many more such cases.”
However, so far it seems that those responsible for the mismanagement of the Port Development Fund will face nothing more than bad press and social media posts, and no one will actually be held accountable.
Filips Rajevskis notes that we are still “light years away” from a situation in which those responsible are identified and publicly named.
“That’s exactly why the public and entrepreneurs hold such a negative view of the state administration. In this case, the fund will most likely be quietly and calmly liquidated, and a year from now they’ll say: look, we’ve saved the state some money!”
The political analyst also commended the State Audit Office for its recent active efforts in identifying wasteful spending. When asked whether such revelations will lead to consequences, Rajevskis bluntly stated that “wasteful spending must be cut.”
The spending by the Port Development Fund also highlighted another problem: the lack of awareness among the country’s top officials. Before the Audit Office’s report was made public, Prime Minister Evika Siliņa (New Unity) reportedly didn’t even know the fund existed.
Asked to comment on this situation, Filips Rajevskis said: “This kind of ignorance is a huge problem. No one knows anything. It’s hard to say why that is.”
Asked whether this scandal could affect the ratings of “New Unity,” Rajevskis replied that their ratings are already in decline and will continue to drop unless there is a significant turning point or breakthrough. “This isn’t just about ratings—it’s about public trust in the Saeima and the government. Data on trust in public administration precisely reflect the public’s attitude.”