The mayor of Prague Bohuslav Svoboda has come under increasingly fierce attacks over his appointment of a new head of DPP, the city’s public transport company. In what looks to have been a risky decision, the mayor installed Vladimir Lich in charge of DPP without holding a tender for the position. Lich’s predecessor left amid a cloud of scandal, with extensive accusations that he had abused his position for personal gain and had influenced DPP tenders to produce results that suited specific parties. The most recent show of disapproval over the signing has come from the influential Federation of Professional Unions, whose members include metro, bus and tram drivers. It said the untransparent method of the choice was highly unfortunate. It’s an ironic turn of events for a mayor who has made a big show of trying to root out corruption and opaque decision making by the city of Prague.
