Page 44 - bneMag February 2021_20210202

44 I Central Europe bne February 2021
Prime Minister Juri Ratas presenting his resignation to President Kersti Kaljulaid.
Estonian premier quits after Tallinn development scandal
Linas Jegelevicius in Vilnius
Estonian Prime Minister Juri Ratas resigned on January 13 over the chief state prosecutor's decision to investigate a Tallinn real estate scandal. President Kersti Kaljulaid immediately asked opposition Reform Party leader Kaja Kallas to try to form
a government, putting an end to the country's turbulent and controversial populist left-right coalition after less than two years in power.
As reported by bne Intellinews, Estonia's chief state prosecutor announced on January 12 that he is investigating allegations of corruption against two
of the ruling parties’ top officials involving government loans given to Tallinn's controversial Porto Franco real
estate development project in return for party donations.
"This decision, as I said, was made as
a result of consultations with the board of the Estonian Centre Party, fellow members of the party group, closest people to my post. And while there definitely would be different solutions, only one of them seemed to be right," said Ratas, who denied being informed about the dubious financing of Porto Franco in any way.
"The suspicions lodged by the Office of the Prosecutor General do not yet mean that someone is definitely guilty, but they inevitably cast a serious shadow on all the parties involved. In such
a situation, giving, through my resig- nation, a possibility to shed light on
all circumstances and achieve clarity seems the only right thing to do. Under conditions of political and societal calm, I am convinced that the investigating authorities will do their work profession- ally and without bias and will establish the definitive truth also in this case," Ratas said.
Taavi Pern, the chief state prosecutor, said that all in all five persons have been declared as suspects in the case and an investigation will determine which suspicions are founded. The suspects include the Centre Party's secretary general Mihhail Korb, Kersti Kracht, an adviser to the Conservative