Work for Lukashenka's luxurious palace still unpaid?

Isakidis Granites company has not received money for finishing the new presidential palace with granite and marble.

A reader writes to charter97.org that foreign company Isakidis Granites, which was the main contractor in finishing the new presidential palace in Winners Avenue with marble and granite, has not received money from the customer. A criminal case was opened, and company employees are questioned as, we hope, witnesses.

“The customer owes the company huge money for more than a year. The state involved the Financial Investigation Department of the State Control Committee. The Investigation Committee opened a criminal case on economic grounds. Employees are constantly questioned in the criminal case. People are scared. They are afraid of injustice and excessive power of investigators. Please, make it public. Don't allow punishing people in secret,” he wrote.

Charter97.org contacted Isakidis Granites. A company representative confirmed the information but refused to give a more detailed comment.

“The process of paying money is underway, so to say. But the process takes more time than we expected. Besides money, we have other problems with the State Control Committee and investigators. Try to understand us,” the representative of the company said.

A charter97.org journalist didn't get an answer from the Investigation Committee, which also refused to confirm the information about the criminal case next day. Siarhei Kabakovich, a spokesman for the central office of the Investigation Committee, said the case “can be in any place” if it exists.

“What I can say exactly is that there are no such materials in the central office of the Investigation Committee. But we can give more information as soon as we get it. Frankly speaking, the case can be in any place, because we have many departments,” he said.

The construction of new Lukashenka's palace began in 2011. OAO Minskpromstroy was the contractor, and the capital construction department of the Minsk city executive committee was the customer.

The talks of the Normandy Four, which took 15 hours, were held in the new presidential palace.

Information:

Isakidis Granites company was founded in 1996. The company that employs 300 professionals has been the leader in stone working in Belarus and abroad for more than 18 years. Isakidis Granites group of companies include Billiton architectural and construction company.