Lithuanian Prime Minister Gintautas Palutskas has resigned amid a corruption scandal, national broadcaster LRT reported on 31 July.
“Palutskas called in the morning and announced his resignation,” said Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, who on 24 July gave Palutskas two weeks to decide on his political fate. The next day, the prime minister said he was going on a “long-planned holiday”.
Lithuanian parliamentary spokesman Saulius Skvernialis said on 30 July that the Union of Democrats for Lithuania will leave the power coalition if Gintautas Palutskas remains head of government.
In addition, Palutskas resigned as chairman of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party, which also belongs to the majority coalition.
Law enforcers are searching a company owned by the wife of Palutskas’s brother-Dankora. The media found out earlier that Dankora received financial support from the EU under the LEADER programme in the amount of almost 173 thousand euros. For this money, the company bought battery systems from Garnis, a company co-owned by Palutskas (he owns 49 per cent of shares). The latter was the only bidder in the tender for the supply of batteries and offered a price of 145 thousand euros.