Prague, Aug 19 (CTK) – The arrival of Robert Slachta, former head of the Czech police Squad for Uncovering Organised Crime (UOOZ) at the Customs Administration is in consistence with law, the Finance Ministry said on Friday in reaction to critics, including security corps trade unions.
Slachta will become a senior councillor of the Customs Office in Pardubice, east Bohemia.
At the same time, Milan Poulicek, director of the Customs Administration, offered him to temporarily charge him with the post of deputy for investigation pending the completion of the tender.
Zdenek Drexler, head of the Union of Security Corps, said previously four tenders should be held for the post in the Customs Administration.
The Finance Ministry said on Friday, however, no one has shown interest in the post and that bids can still be made.
It said the tender for the post of the Customs Administration deputy head was launched in December 2015 and that the deadline for bids has been extended for a third time already, which means that the post has been vacant for nine months now.
Slachta left the police as from June 30. He criticised the police shakeup based on the merger of his UOOZ with the corruption squad into the National Centre against Organised Crime (NCOZ), which took effect on August 1.
The police reform approved by Interior Minister Milan Chovanec (Social Democrats, CSSD) was criticised by Finance Minister Andrej Babis (ANO) who threatened with his movement withdrawing from the government coalition agreement.
Slachta was offered the post by Deputy Finance Minister Alena Schillerova in early August. She said cooperation with an experienced former police officer would be beneficial now that the powers of the Customs Administration in investigating crimes are being extended.
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