Justice minister Lucia Zitnanska continues on her crusade against head of the Supreme Court Stefan Harabin, filing what is now her fourth petition for disciplinary action against Harabin over a case of hand-picked judges in a big money case.
Zitnanska, who is hoping to strip Harabin of his judge’s robes, announced the news yesterday, saying she wants Harabin dismissed from the bench, also for meddling with the independence of the court. The 6-point petition points to how Harabin changed 3 of the 5 judges at the Supreme Court in a senate presiding over the case of Lemikon versus national lottery company Tipos.
The petition also points to other cases of certain cases not being assigned randomly, including a case that the Constitutional Court ruled over in August, with the verdict that Harabin had manipulated the process.
The Supreme Court issued a written statement in response to Zitnanska’s latest attack, saying she was abusing her position for political gain, and that this is the subject of an investigation already underway at the Attorney General’s office, as part of the Harabin-Zitnanska sparring. The statement also makes reference to an earlier case where a former head of the Supreme Court changed judges in the same way, thanks to a Constitutional court decision.
If the coalition government manages to end its term by ousting Harabin, that achievement alone would justify its existence. More power to her elbow!