Watchdog: ex-Klaipeda port breached law and ethics

Arvydas Vaitkus, the former chief executive officer of the Klaipeda State Seaport Authority, breached the law after he failed to declare interests, the Chief Official Ethics Commission has ruled.

Arvydas Vaitkus

Vaitkus disagrees with the ethics watchdog and plans to appeal.

According to the COEC, Vaitkus had to provide information in his declaration of private interests on persons who donated to the list of candidates he was on and ran for Klaipeda Mayor and Klaipeda City Council and who had direct commercial interests with companies operating in the port.

Moreover, after assuming the position of the port's CEO, Vaitkus failed to submit declarations of private interests in time.

"He breached the law by failing to update his declaration of private interests with information about persons who could become the cause of interest conflicts during his management of the port," COEC chairman Edmundas Sakalauskas said.

Attending the COEC sitting, Vaitkus disagreed with the conclusion and plans to appeal.

"I cannot agree with the commission's today conclusion. What can I do? I need to think. Speaking about my standing for election and declaration, I have declared everything. (…) I have time to think and I will probably appeal," Vaitkus told BNS after the sitting.

Vaitkus, who led the port authority since 2013, was sacked by Lithuanian Transport and Communications Minister Rokas Masiulis due to doubts over this ability to remain impartial towards enterprises which supported him during the municipal election.

Vaitkus appealed but a court of first instance rejected his appeal.

BNS