By: T. B. (Nova24TV)
What was the purpose of the meeting between Prime Minister’s companion, Tina Gaber, and the President of SDH, Žiga Debeljak? On Thursday, they were observed in one of the Ljubljana restaurants, where they were sitting in a private room, and Debeljak settled the bill with an SDH corporate card. Regardless of Gaber no longer being registered on the lobbyist list, this does not provide any assurance that potential misuse of information will not occur, as confirmed in one of the previous statements by the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (CPC). What is even more noticeable is the timing of their meeting, as it happens at a time when it appears that ministers and behind-the-scenes figures are turning their backs on Golob. As we have previously reported, Golob already has plans for the future once he leaves his seat.
Many questions arise regarding the fact that the Prime Minister’s companion, Tina Gaber, a former lobbyist, and the President of SDH and the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Telekom, Žiga Debeljak, were seen together at the Cubo restaurant. Given that they sat in a private room, it raises doubts that it was just a “regular lunch”. Instead, it seems like the serious preparation of Golob’s “golden parachute” after his recent failed attempt in politics. We have also directly contacted the Prime Minister’s office, SDH, and CPC with specific questions.
From reliable sources, we have learned that Gaber and Debeljak had a meeting in a private room at the Cubo restaurant and left around 4:00 PM. Gaber left first, and Debeljak followed five minutes later, allegedly settling the bill with an SDH corporate card. The purpose or reason for their meeting is not yet known. However, we cannot ignore the fact that Gaber is a former lobbyist, and Debeljak manages the entire state assets and is the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Telekom, a company that finds Nova24TV troublesome, as they have moved us from a prominent position to the 701st place in their programme schedule.
It should be noted that the Prime Minister and Debeljak are so close that Golob even offered him the position of Minister of Finance before becoming the CEO of the Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SDH). However, Debeljak reportedly declined the offer because he is not accustomed to working for such a low salary, around 3500 euros net.
Tina Gaber was removed from the Lobbyists Register on December 15th, 2022, immediately after her “romance” with Golob was revealed, which was confirmed by the CPC at the time. The CPC reminded us then that the “Law on Integrity and Corruption Prevention requires officials, for example, the Prime Minister, to include a conflict of interest safeguard in lobbying. If a lobbyist (e.g., the Prime Minister) identifies circumstances in which there could be a conflict of interest during lobbying, they must reject such contact and report it to the Commission. In other words, the (outside) partner of an official with whom they have a personal relationship cannot lobby the official, even if they are a registered lobbyist because the official must reject the contact to prevent a conflict of interest.” But what about when it comes to the “partner’s friend”?
There is no safeguard to prevent abuses, only the integrity of individuals
In one of their previous statements, the CPC provided a more detailed explanation: “However, this partner, as a registered lobbyist (or a legally defined exception – an unregistered lobbyist), can lobby any other public servant or body as long as they are not personally, professionally, or politically connected to them, meaning there are no circumstances of a conflict of interest with that lobbyist. In the case of personal partnerships between lobbyists and officials, there is a risk that such a lobbyist, who has no contractual relationship with the ministry and thus no responsibility regarding the information received, could misuse the information, or disclose it to unauthorised persons or use it for their (non-property) benefit. Of course, this depends on the integrity and professionalism of both parties involved to prevent this.”
To simplify, in the specific case of Gaber and Debeljak meeting, we would have to blindly trust their “integrity”, which is not promising news given their past, especially considering the suggestions that Golob wants to consolidate Slovenia’s energy sector, a billion-dollar taxpayer-funded pie, one of the last post-transition strongholds. Ministers are resigning, and even media that were previously favourable to Golob have started criticising him, indicating that shadowy figures are gradually pushing him out of the game. Conveniently, at this time, Golob’s companion met with the President of SDH, responsible for managing the state’s capital investments.
Questions to the Prime Minister, CPC, and SDH
We have directed our questions directly to the Prime Minister’s office, the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, and the SDH. We have not yet received responses from the first two, while SDH provided the following response: “Dear, the CEO of the Slovenian Sovereign Holding, Mr. Žiga Debeljak, does not have a business payment card, and all expenses for business lunches when hosting business partners are covered by himself. Regarding this, SDH does not incur any costs. In this week, the CEO had no business lunches or meetings at the restaurant you mentioned, and we cannot and are not obliged to comment on any potential private meetings since they are private matters.” So, it was not a “business” meeting but rather a private one, which does not deny the possibility of any abuse or attempted abuse.
Debeljak belongs to the inner circle of Borut Jamnik, the CEO of Modra zavarovalnica. He is also burdened by the controversial real estate deals of Mercator in the Balkans, specifically the famous Mercator purchase of Maxen gas stations (which even leads to Gregor Golobič and the once notorious lawyer Miro Senica). These deals are reportedly under investigation by the state prosecutor’s office.
The plan of Golob’s government was inadvertently revealed
It was only due to the recent floods that we learned that Golob’s government intended to centralise and consolidate the entire electrical distribution system with 300 million euros, as we might never have found out otherwise. In the budget revision for 2023, Robert Golob’s government allocated 185.13 million euros for the purchase of shares from small shareholders in five electricity distribution companies. They intend to pay out the 185.13 million euros to small shareholders through the Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SDH) this year, “with the possibility to postpone the rest to 2024”. This means that the 185 million euros is not the final cost that taxpayers will pay for this unnecessary and highly controversial purchase.
These companies include Elektro Ljubljana, Elektro Maribor, Elektro Celje, Elektro Gorenjska, and Elektro Primorska, where they plan to use public funds to push out or buy out small shareholders. These small shareholders have been trying to exit ownership of these companies for several years. The majority owner of these companies is the state, and small shareholders hold about 20% of the ownership, which does not allow them to influence business decisions. However, they do want to gain access to the money, and under Robert Golob’s leadership, this seems to be on the horizon. According to predictions, small shareholders will earn significantly more from selling low-value shares on the market than they would by selling them at the regular price, and the electricity companies will become 100% state-owned as a result.
Golob’s friend will be in charge
The process of buying out or pushing out small shareholders in these companies will be led by none other than the Slovenian State Holding (SDH) under the leadership of Debeljak. According to experts, the next step for Robert Golob’s government is to merge the electricity distribution companies. The merged company would then be led by Golob, who is thus preparing a new job, a golden parachute, where he could once again indulge in luxury.