The organizer of the Agriculture Ministry’s (ZM) 3.1 million euros electric vehicle charging station procurement has avoided disciplinary responsibility after leaving his job at the ministry. Shortly after, he was hired at the State Chancellery, reportedly at the invitation of its director, Raivis Kronbergs, who previously served as State Secretary of the Agriculture Ministry, reports magazine “Ir”.
As previously reported, the Agriculture Ministry’s internal investigation into the procurement concluded without holding anyone accountable, despite State Audit Office findings last year labelling it a waste of public funds. State Auditor Edgars Korčagins even called it “one of the most irrational projects ever seen in audits.”
The project was launched when the ministry was led by National Alliance (NA) member Kaspars Gerhards, and the only bidder and winner of the tender was a company owned by the sister of his party colleague, Rihards Kols (NA).
Despite confirmed violations, no officials were punished, as most had exceeded the legal statute of limitations for disciplinary action.
The two employees who could still be held responsible resigned immediately after the investigation began, according to “Ir”.
One of the key figures, Helmuts Dundurs, a Deputy Director of the Administrative Department, soon found a job at the State Chancellery, now led by Raivis Kronbergs, his former superior at the Agriculture Ministry. Kronbergs himself was never investigated because by the time the inquiry began, he had already left for his new role as director of the State Chancellery in August.
According to “Ir”, Dundurs, who had worked at the Agriculture Ministry for over 20 years, started at the State Chancellery in December. Kronbergs explained to the magazine that he was aware of Dundurs’ departure from the ministry and offered him a position, claiming that the office had been struggling to find a procurement specialist for an open vacancy.
However, Dundurs has now resigned from his new job for “personal reasons”. He told “Ir” that he was “tired and had lost faith in public administration.”
Dundurs disagrees with the internal investigation’s conclusion that he and another Administrative Department employee were solely responsible for the procurement.
“We were not the only two people on the commission,” he told “Ir”, arguing that he had only partial oversight of the process and no real decision-making power because “decisions were made elsewhere.”
He declined to provide further details, stating: “I have no concrete evidence in hand, so I cannot comment. But the way this situation turned out is disgusting.”
The State Audit Office has rejected the Agriculture Ministry’s internal investigation results, particularly the decision not to assess Raivis Kronbergs’ responsibility in the matter.
As a result, the audit office has asked Prime Minister Evika Siliņa (New Unity) to review the case. The Prime Minister has since requested explanations from Kronbergs and additional information from the ministry, but no final decision has been made yet, reports “Ir”.