RIGA, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- Inga Kolegova, the current head of the Latvian State Environmental Service, withdrew her candidacy for the post of the State Revenue Service's director-general on Friday, citing insufficient political support.
Kolegova said in an interview with Latvian public radio that she found political intrigues around her candidacy unacceptable.
"Most importantly, though, I do not see a possibility to carry out reforms in the State Revenue Service without solid political support," Kolegova said, explaining that in order to push through the planned reforms it would be necessary to amend Latvia's current laws.
"Considering these circumstances, I came to the conclusion that my work (as head of the Revenue Service) would not be successful and productive," Kolegova said.
She also denied that she decided to withdraw her candidacy because of reports about her allegedly suspicious business deals.
Latvian Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis voiced regret over Kolegova's decision but said he understood that it was too hard for Kolegova to withstand the pressure she has been exposed to in recent days.
Kucinskis said in an interview with Latvian Television that a new tender would be arranged to select a candidate for Latvia's next tax chief. This time, a staffing company will be hired to pick the best candidate, Kucinskis' spokesman Andrejs Vaivars informed.
Finance Minister Dana Reizniece-Ozola, who had proposed Kolegova for head of the State Revenue Service, said that new rules were needed to ensure the success of the new tender, but that for now there is no alternative candidate for the position.
Although partners of Latvia's tripartite center-right coalition, Kucinskis' centrist the Greens and Farmers Union (ZZS) and the right-wing National Alliance, backed Kolegova's candidacy, the center-right Unity denied its support, raising suspicions about Kolegova's past business deals and the accuracy of her tax returns.
Last year, for instance, Kolegova received 320,000 euros (about 358,400 U.S. dollars) in dividends from Pallog, a company she co-owns with her brother, and then gave the money away to the brother and his other company. Kolegova has declared similar transactions also in previous years.
Although Kucinskis assured coalition partners that he had ordered a detailed examination of Kolegova's deals and that it had revealed no irregularities, Unity refused to back Kolegova's candidacy and called for a new tender to pick Latvia's next tax chief.
After the State Revenue Service's previous director-general Inara Petersone stood down at the end of June, a public tender was held to fill the vacant position, but none of the candidates who applied in the competition was found to be suitable.
It was then decided to look for a candidate among Latvia's top-ranked public servants without organizing a new tender. Apart from Kolegova, the job was also offered to Treasury head Kaspars Abolins and Baiba Vitolina, the head of the Consumer Rights Protection Center, but they refused to run for the position.
