By: Spletni časopis
“I would like to take this opportunity to apologise, on behalf of the coalition and the government, to all the artists who were, due to this referendum campaign, literally personally abused for political score-settling by the SDS. I regret that this happened. We boycotted this referendum solely because we knew it would be hostile. Hostile toward individuals who not only created our culture and national identity but, in a way, also our country. I regret that it turned out this way. I regret every campaign of hatred, and the same goes for this one.”
This is how Prime Minister Robert Golob responded last night in the show Politično to Tanja Gobec’s question about whether Asta Vrečko is politically responsible for the defeat in the referendum. In the referendum, the government’s proposal to expand special pension supplements for the cultural elite – similar to those already granted to the sports elite – was rejected by 92.53% of voters (404,214 votes), with only 7.47% (32,622 votes) supporting the government’s solution.
The show Politično is the result of a political purge carried out by Golob at RTV Slovenia – what he described as “depoliticization.” In a similar manner, a special show was given to Mladina journalist Marcel Štefančič as propaganda support for the left and Golob. Because of this, in Politično there are no follow-up questions when falsehoods are blatantly stated – as was the case in the segment about the referendum, when Golob told Gobec: “It actually did not change anything, because pensions were already being awarded. In fact, the Janša government, the last one, awarded the most. More than we have awarded in three years. And the law remains in effect. So, the referendum did not change anything. But it unjustly accused Slovenian artists, as if they were the country’s biggest problem.”
The Prime Minister’s claim that Janez Janša’s last government granted the most privileged pension supplements is a deliberate falsehood. The government spread this misinformation for months during the legislative changes and referendum campaign. But the facts show that Janez Drnovšek’s governments awarded over 200 such supplements, while all three Janša governments awarded about ten times fewer. Under the special law that was rejected in the referendum, Golob’s government would have immediately outpaced all three Janša governments, as 17 individuals who had applied under the old law would have immediately received additional supplements. The government kept the names of these fortunate individuals hidden from the public before the referendum. If the names had been revealed, it would have been even more obvious that this was not about all artists in the country, but rather about lifelong supplements guaranteeing the highest pensions, to which these individuals had made no contributions through the public pension system (ZPIZ).
It is also worth noting that during Miro Cerar’s tenure, at the proposal of Peter Vilfan, a special law was passed for Vilfan and other left-leaning athletes and sports officials, under which more than 100 individuals received privileged pension supplements.
When journalists do not call out the deliberate spread of false information, they turn their media outlet into a media of lies. And we all have to pay for RTV Slovenia.
On the possibility of additional referendums, Golob told Gobec: “In all other referendums, the ideas and proposals supported by the ruling coalition always won. I believe that this will continue to be the case when it comes to substantive referendums – not hateful referendums – but substantive ones, where people will listen and vote accordingly.”
When asked whether the government will introduce a property tax after the contribution for elderly care – which will take 1% from everyone’s salary (and an additional percentage from employers) – Golob responded: “We are still waiting for a response from the Ministry of Finance. I see that they are already leaning toward postponement. But that is their decision. The experts must determine whether it is possible to design a form that would promote solving the housing issue. If such a form cannot be found, then it will not go forward.”