Culture Ministry Declares Selection Procedure for SNG Director Invalid

Bratislava, February 21 (TASR) - The Culture Ministry has declared Wednesday's (February 19) selection procedure for the post of director general of the Slovak National Gallery (SNG) invalid, with the reason being a conflict of interest of one of the members of the selection committee, the ministry's communications department head Petra Bacinska told TASR on Friday, adding that it will announce a new selection procedure. Bacinska also quoted Culture Minister Martina Simkovicova (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) as saying that it is unacceptable that the law would be broken during the selection procedure. "She therefore acted immediately and ordered an investigation into the suspected conflict of interest. She subsequently drew consequences," she said, adding that the minister regretted the attitude of a member of the commission who, despite knowing about his conflict of interest, didn't inform the personnel office director or other members of the commission about this fact. The Culture Ministry will inform about details of a new selection procedure. The Culture Ministry announced a selection procedure for the post of SNG director general at the beginning of February and a non-public hearing of the candidates took place on Wednesday (February 19). The SNG has been without a proper statutory head since August 2024, when the minister dismissed Alexandra Kusa from the post of director. Both Anton Bittner and Milos Timko headed the gallery as temporarily authorised statutory representatives, while currently Jaroslav Ninaj is in charge. am/mcs