Slovakia: Political dispute over EU referendum and pension reforms

Slovak political tensions have escalated following Prime Minister Robert Fico's claims that a referendum regarding Slovakia's membership in the European Union was fraudulent. Fico alleged that the reported 52 percent turnout was a fabrication. In response, Branislav Gröhling, leader of the opposition SaS party, dismissed these claims as lies and urged the Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic to defend itself through criminal complaints.

To counter Fico's rhetoric, Gröhling announced that SaS intends to reintroduce a parliamentary proposal to formally embed Slovakia's membership in both the EU and NATO into the national constitution. Additionally, Gröhling criticized Fico's decision to return the mandate for managing the Ministry of Environment to President Peter Pellegrini, characterizing it as an evasion of responsibility.

Separately, a debate has emerged regarding the thirteenth pension payment. While the current government maintains the flat payment of 667.30 euros, the SaS party has proposed a targeted model. Under the SaS plan, only pensioners with incomes below the median would receive a supplemental payment, calculated as the difference between the median and their current pension. SaS estimates this targeted approach would cost between 100 and 150 million euros annually, compared to the current 917 million euro expenditure.