Roma representatives call on Heger to consider dismissal of Secretary of State Kumanova – PRAVDA.sk

Representatives of Roma civil society called on Prime Minister Eduard Heger (OĽaNO) to consider, together with ministers, the dismissal of State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture Zuzana Kumanová at Wednesday’s government meeting.

The truth,
TASR

25.08.2021 08:56, updated: 10:15

State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture Zuzana Kumanová

They ask for it in an open letter signed by more than 40 Roma personalities. “We are convinced that the nomination of Mrs. Kuman was an excellent step and that her work as Secretary of State gave the Roma hope that they are accepted at the highest level in this country,” said university teachers, journalists, activists, mayors and Roma artists.

They also pointed out that Kumanová, as an ethnographer in 2019, received an award from the then President Andrej Kisk. They emphasized that she was the highest-ranking Roma woman in the state administration and the only Roma woman who took part in the government’s deliberations when she represented the Minister of Culture.

Furthermore, as the State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, she was responsible, among other things, for supporting minority culture, regional culture and cultural diplomacy. They also emphasized that her nomination for the post of state secretary was noticed last year by many foreign media, which appreciated that the Roma in Slovakia would be represented in the Slovak government for the first time.

The motion to dismiss should appear on the government’s agenda on Wednesday. Kumanová herself wants to comment on the whole matter only then, the minister should also comment on the government.

The decision on the exchange of the position of State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture falls within the competence of the For People party in accordance with the coalition agreement, the party chairwoman and investment minister Veronika Remišová announced.

She denied that the current Secretary of State Zuzana Kumanová would be dismissed for a different opinion. According to Remišová, the change in post should support the educational dimension of culture. She confirmed that Viera Leščáková, Vice-President for People, was to take office.

Prior to the start of the government meeting, the Minister of Culture, Natália Milanová, confirmed that she would submit a proposal to the cabinet to dismiss her state secretary Kumanová. She said it was a political nomination for the People’s Party, stemming from a coalition agreement.

“The government is approving a possible nomination – that is all I will say at the moment,” Milanová said, adding that she would comment in more detail only after the government’s deliberations.