Answers provided by Riga City Council’s Central Administration to questions asked by For Latvia’s Development faction leader Viesturs Zeps about Riga Mayor Mārtiņš Staķis’ expenses on international business visits indicate that the city council has spent more than EUR 14 000 on this, Zeps reports.
He notes that since autumn of 2020, when the city council led by Staķis started working, the topic of deputies’ business visits has not been discussed even once. This means city council deputies were never given the opportunity to decide on the usefulness of business visits.
Despite this, however, business visits have been happening. According to data from the Central Administration, Staķis’ business visits alone have cost the city council EUR 14 069.
In total, Riga City Council has spent EUR 54 181 on various business visits of its deputies since the start of Staķis’ term.
Although the by-laws of the Riga State City Municipality determine the competence of the Committee on Financial and Administrative Affairs to assess the usefulness of business trips and to accept them, it is because of Staķis’ negligence the committee has not been able to review the topic of deputies’ business visits. However, despite this there have been visits organised regardless.
The chairman of Riga City Council decided on them arbitrarily, opposite to rules that regulate this.
The Ministry of Environment Protection and Regional Development (VARAM) has publicly admitted
officials are not authorised to arbitrarily issue order for themselves. Regulations state the mayor does not have the right to arbitrarily decide for other deputies of the city council.
Zeps said the information received about business visits of Riga’s mayor and deputies paints a very bad picture – “many business trips and very little order”.
“Basically I can conclude that mayor Staķis, due to his negligence or incompetence, has circumvented the established order when it comes to his and his colleagues’ business trips. He made arbitrary decisions regarding their costs, which is completely against the regulations of the municipal administration. Amounts that were spent were so large, in fact, we can treat this as a criminal act. I will explain the answers to this issue to appropriate institutions,” said Zeps.
Previously it was reported that Staķis arbitrarily-made decision to travel to Tampere to attend the World Ice Hockey Championship finals had caused a scandal among residents in Latvia. Staķis confirmed in an interview that he travelled to Tampere after receiving an invitation from his Finnish colleague Kalervo Kummola.
According to Staķis’ own signed order regarding the business trip, Riga City Council’s budget was used to pay for tickets and travel insurance policy, hotel stay, city tax and business trip expenses at 100%. The city council also covered 30% of local transport expenses in Tampere.
A general analysis of the organisation of international business trips was performed by the municipality by comparing it to Riga City Council’s established order and the actual way things are done in the city council. The analysis was organised following a request from Zeps.
Findings caused serious concerns about possible violations of regulations by the chairman of Riga City Council that have been going on for a long time. Zeps has reported as much to VARAM.
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