The fight for a valuable clinic disrupts the coalition in the Jelgava region

In November of last year, KNAB decided for the second time not to initiate criminal proceedings about how the Jelgava clinic came into private hands and why the region still pays extra for it every year. In February of this year, the Prosecutor’s Office instructed KNAB to check it for the third time.

The only person that KNAB has found so far is Guntars Prolis, who was assigned by the municipality to monitor the clinic and who appointed himself to the position of clinic manager, combining positions without permission.

He paid an administrative fine of 170 euros.

The contract signed twenty years ago expired at the beginning of this year. In October, the council voted to sell the center at auction. This would mean that the private concessionaire could apply for the right of first refusal, because the company “Kapitala pravades systéms” got 12% of the shares of the Zemgale health center under conditions that no one understands. The value of the municipal company is estimated at 2.5 million euros, but it is based on incomplete data provided by the private owner. It is interested in keeping the price of the clinic as low as possible.

Rumors in the city are that dismissed municipal officials find warm places in the clinic, while close companies get favorable contracts there.

At the beginning of April, after an ugly scandal, Lasmanis resigned from the post of mayor.

Until then he was conciliatory. As chairman, he was satisfied with the evaluation of the clinic, but he was skeptical about terminating the concession agreement before the deadline, as it would mean litigation.

Until now, the owner of the capital shares of the health center was the executive director of the municipality, Līga Lonerte. He came to his post when Ziedonis Caune from the Farmers’ Union led the council. Lonerte is also a member of the same party. After a public spat with Madara Lasmaini, she is now on sick leave. In March, supervision over the company was transferred to Lonerte’s deputy Kaspars Sniedzītis.