Corruption scandal threatens Slovenian leader's bid for new term

SLOVENIA:SLOVENES VOTE in a general election tomorrow, with prime minister Janez Jansa hoping a major corruption scandal will not derail his bid for a second term in office.

Mr Jansa took power in November 2004, just months after Slovenia joined the EU and Nato, and he has overseen a period of sustained economic growth, adoption of the euro in 2007, and his country's presidency of the EU in the first half of this year.

But a slowdown in the economy and rising inflation have unsettled Slovenes, who enjoy the highest standard of living in formerly communist central and eastern Europe.

That growing unease with Mr Jansa and his centre-right Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) has been compounded by claims that he is trying to muzzle the media, and most recently by allegations that he received bribes as part of his country's biggest ever deal for military hardware.

A Finnish television company reported this month that a Helsinki arms firm called Patria paid €21 million through intermediaries to Mr Jansa and other officials to win a €278 million contract to supply Slovenia with 135 armoured vehicles.

Finland's National Bureau of Investigation is looking into the matter, and plans to complete its case by next spring.

The SDS has sought to portray Mr Jansa as a victim of a political smear campaign, and he has denied any wrongdoing and demanded an apology from the Finnish broadcaster.

During a debate in which parliament narrowly approved the deal, on the condition that it be cancelled if corruption was uncovered, Mr Jansa urged politicians and Slovenia's two million people to put aside a scandal that he has called a "personal nightmare".

"We have elections and whoever wins, the new government will need to know what its priorities are and what voters want. In six months' time, no one will still be talking about Patria," he said. "Instead of discussing how we could make our lives better through elections, we're discussing whether or not I took bribes."

Mr Jansa (50) has also been accused of attacking critical media outlets, a charge reinforced by complaints from the International Press Institute that Slovenia was using "diplomatic pressure" against the Finnish channel which accused him of corruption. His allies have warned that relations between Ljubljana and Helsinki could be damaged by the affair.

The latest opinion polls put the SDS in the lead with 29.8 per cent of support, with the opposition Social Democrats on 23.6 per cent.

Led by former communist Borut Pahor (44), who has taken them from the margins to the head of the centre-left bloc, the Social Democrats want to curb investment in the military and boost spending on pensions, healthcare and other welfare schemes.

Surveys suggest a strong showing by the Liberal Democrats and the like-minded Zares party could see the Social Democrats form a coalition with more seats than the SDS and its allies, making tough post-election talks likely.