News digest: After months of waiting, President appoints Fico's nominee to head top spy agency
Festival tip to end summer season, Prime Minister targets Progressive Slovakia chair, and Slovak family company among European leaders.
Good evening. Here is the Monday, August 26 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
Top intelligence agency head appointed
On Monday, President Peter Pellegrini appointed the new director of the Slovak Information Service (SIS), the country's top intelligence agency.
The government approved the nomination of former Justice Ministry state secretary Pavol Gašpar for the SIS post in February. Gašpar became the SIS deputy director while gaining the powers of the intelligence agency's director.
Under normal circumstances, the president appoints the SIS chief. However, then president Zuzana Čaputová said that she would leave this job to her successor. Her term ended in June. Therefore, to bypass the president, the government changed the agency's statute, without providing any details.
Pavol Gašpar is the son of the accused Smer MP and ex-police chief Tibor Gašpar. The former faced a charge for giving false statement and lying under oath, however, the charges were later dropped on legal grounds.
The public first got to know him from a leaked video recording from a hunters' lodge in which he is heard threatening to kill Special Prosecutor Daniel Lipšic.
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- LAST WEEK: Fico rehearses another misleading narrative, with multiple targets. The propagandists in the Kremlin would applaud.
- OPINION: The SIS says some books pose a threat. But airport paperbacks?
- HOLIDAY: Shops to be closed on Thursday due to SNP celebrations.
- HISTORY: A bust of Hungarian king was unveiled in Nové Zámky, accompanied by a light show.
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FEATURE STORY
Among European leaders in garage business
At the beginning of the year, The Financial Times compiled a list of the thousand fastest-growing companies in Europe, based on average annual growth between 2019 and 2022.
"They sent us an email. I thought it was spam, but I forwarded it to my brother. Luckily, we filled out the details, and you can see how it turned out," recalls Marek Choleva.
FESTIVAL FOR THE WEEKEND
End of summer with a bang
Since its inception in 2008, the Uprising festival has become a staple, an event to say goodbye to summer. This year's 17th edition will once again take place at the Zlaté Piesky lakes on the outskirts of Bratislava this weekend of August 30-31. Although originally targeting reggae fans, its scope has widened, bringing ska, Latino, drum and bass, dub and more genres. Grab your tickets here.
IN OTHER NEWS
- In July, prices in Slovakia grew 2.6 percent year-on-year. Employees and low-income households felt a stronger effect of the price growth index, namely 2.7% each, according to the Statistical Office. (SITA)
- On Monday, President Peter Pellegrini urged the governing coalition to resolve the election of the new Speaker of Parliament. Following his meeting with Peter Žiga (Hlas), who is temporarily in charge of parliament, the president said that the its functioning has not been paralysed despite this situation. Žiga said that the coalition will hold a meeting this week regarding the issue, and reiterated that the post belongs to the Hlas party, which is not interested in revising the coalition agreement. (TASR)
- A full-scale replica of resistance fighters' bunker opened near the village of Kunerad, Žilina Region, to mark the 80th anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising. The bunker was built based on WWII photographs. Although originally situated elsewhere, it was built near a hiking trail and bike route for accessibility. (TASR)
- The coalition's Slovak National Party (SNS) submitted a bill aimed to bolster the protection of Slovak state symbols, including the introduction of an obligation to publicly display the state flag on all state-owned buildings. (TASR)
- Košice airport reached the threshold of 500,000 passengers since the beginning of the year on Sunday, August 25, one month earlier than last year. The passenger was Patricia, who flew with Ryanair from Košice to Zadar in Croatia. (TASR)
WEATHER FOR TUESDAY: A few clouds here and there, but occasionally showers or storms might occur. Daily temperatures between 28 °C to 33 °C expected, in north between 23 °C to 28 °C. Level 1 high temperatures warning issued for several districts mainly in the southern part of the country, see map here. (SHMÚ)
AUGUST 27 NAME DAY IN SLOVAKIA: Silvia
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