Cytrycki not quitting says Gov't

The government has denied that Treasury Minister Slawomir Cytrycki, responsible for privatization policy, had offered to resign after less than three months in the job. Cytrycki also publicly denied earlier rumors, reported in Gazeta Wyborcza that he had quit on March 20 but that Prime Minister Leszek Miller had rejected his resignation. Government spokesman Michal Tober denied reports, based on sources both from the ruling Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) and from parliament, that Cytrycki and Miller had clashed over privatization strategy. Cytrycki was handed a sweeping mandate to speed up privatization, but has made little progress on the big-ticket deals he needs to close to hit his zl. 9.1 billion sell-off target this year. He has been off work sick for the past few days, forcing the cancellation yesterday of his appearance before the parliamentary treasury committee. (Reuters; Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 1) J.K.