Eureko deal returns to haunt Wšsacz

Last week, officers from the Central Investigation Bureau detained former Treasury Minister Emil Wšsacz in Silesia. He was then interrogated at the prosecutor's office in Gdańsk before being released. Wšsacz is charged with abandoning his responsibilities and acting to the detriment of the State Treasury. Seven years ago he made the decision to sell a 30-percent stake in PZU to Dutch firm Eureko.

National prosecutor Janusz Kaczmarek says that the prosecutor' office obtained a report from auditing company BDO proving that there were a number of irregularities in the privatization of PZU and that Eureko's offer was not the strongest.

Kaczmarek says that despite a lack of agreement with then Deputy Treasury Minister Alicja Kornasiewicz, Wšsacz selected Eureko. Wšsacz, who currently heads WSE-listed company Stalexport, says he would still choose it today.

Kaczmarek stresses that the offers of leading insurance companies German Allianz and French Axa were rejected, while Eureko, whose market share amounted to less than one percent, was chosen. "In the years 1998 to1999 Eureko was a weak, second-rate sector investor," says Kaczmarek.

According to the CEO of Eureko Polska, Michał Nastula, the information given in the 1999 offer was accurate and presented a true picture of Eureko. He says that the assertion that the company was a second-rate investor is unjustified. "Eureko gave the highest price out of all the companies participating in the tender. In terms of its content and finances, Eureko's offer was the best," Nastula stresses. To prove this, last week Eureko Polska asked the Treasury Ministry for permission to reveal the details of its offer.

The parliamentary investigation commission probing the PZU sale said in a report issued about a year ago that the deal was not valid and it should be annulled. According to Eureko, the Treasury Ministry held full control over the PZU privatization process and the company only acted within those guidelines. "The contracts with Eureko are binding, but for seven years they haven't been executed," says Nastula.

Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro did not want to comment on the annulment of the deal. He stressed that Wšsacz's detainment was not politicalymotivated, as the opposition claimed. The conflict between Eureko and the State Treasury has been ongoing for more than six years.