KDH: Gov't Failed in Combatting Foot-and-mouth Disease, Takac Should Resign

Bratislava, April 11 (TASR) - The government has mishandled the situation regarding the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, and should therefore take personal responsibility and dismiss Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Richard Takac (Smer-SD), with the government’s failures being particularly evident in the slow implementation of measures in comparison to neighboring countries, MP Marian Caucik (Christian Democratic Movement/KDH) declared at a press conference on Friday. "At first, we warned the Chief Veterinary Officer that, in our view, he did not adopt effective and sufficient measures to prevent the disease from spreading to Slovakia. Later, we called on Minister Takac to reassess whether the Chief Veterinary Officer Martin Chudy, appointed by him, was truly doing everything that the law allows to do," said Caucik, adding that the measures issued by Chudy were not followed, and the disease spread to other farms. In the first outbreak area in the village of Baka, a three-kilometer control zone around the epicenter of the disease had to be established, and all livestock within that zone was culled. Caucik emphasized that this order did not come from the European Commission, but from Slovakia’s Chief Veterinary Officer, as confirmed by Minister Takac. He further criticized the Minister of Agriculture for concealing information about the possible infection of livestock and a new outbreak at a farm near the village of Jurova, where no measures were implemented, and the infection was eventually confirmed. "It’s not normal to hide potential outbreak sites. It’s not normal that in one outbreak all animals are culled, and in others only the testing is done. It’s not normal to exclude private veterinarians and breeders' associations from the meetings of the anti-epidemic crisis committee. And it’s not normal that the compensation for livestock losses differs drastically between small-scale breeders and large farms. All of this raises serious questions," added Caucik. The government plans to compensate both small and large breeders at the same rate, but according to KDH MP Jozef Humensky, the reality will be vastly different. In the case of a herd of one thousand animals, compensation is estimated at between seven and ten million euros, which equals €7,000 to €10,000 per animal. Within the three-kilometer zone, 32 household farms were destroyed and are expected to receive compensation totaling €30,000— an amount that differs from what the government previously claimed, said Humensky. "Also, in the Central Register of Contracts, agreements for compensation at €738 per animal are listed. That’s why we ask: since it appears that compensation will differ significantly between small-scale, medium, and large-scale breeders, what are the conditions? What will the form of compensation be? And what values are set per individual head of cattle?" asked Humensky. mf