Columnist Armands Puče sharply criticizes New Unity and the Progressives ahead of Saeima elections
News portal La.lv has published an opinion piece by columnist Armands Puče criticizing the parties New Unity and the Progressives over their record in power ahead of the upcoming Saeima elections.
News portal La.lv has published an opinion column by writer Armands Puče, in which he sharply criticizes the parties New Unity (JV) and the Progressives in connection with the upcoming Saeima elections.
Puče writes that representatives of both parties, who have held power in recent years, are now trying to distance themselves from decisions made earlier, including matters related to the airline airBaltic and the Rail Baltica railway project.
Funding for non-governmental organizations
The column states that the Civic Alliance-Latvia association received more than 1.5 million euros from the state budget over three years. Puče notes that the organizations Providus and Delna received funding from the budgets of the Supreme Court and the Prosecutor's Office, respectively, as well as from several ministries.
Border security and criticism of the interior minister
The author addresses criticism of Interior Minister Dombrava over a letter concerning Spain, and recalls a recently discovered tunnel under Latvia's eastern border that had been used by organized crime. He notes that a procurement for scanners designed to detect such tunnels was only announced last week, and points out that former Prime Minister Evika Siliņa of New Unity had previously been responsible for overseeing the border construction process.
Other events mentioned
The column mentions that Latvia's anti-corruption bureau KNAB has begun looking into Prime Minister Kulbergs' trips to meet voters outside Riga, as well as a procurement case in the timber industry involving the Union of Greens and Farmers (ZZS). Puče also notes that President Edgars Rinkēvičs interrupted his vacation to deliver a speech at the Aglona religious festival about anonymous comments on social media and the need to find balance between anxiety and indifference, also referring to shelters that were never built.
The article reflects the author's personal opinion and assessment of events ahead of the elections.
