Vanhanen goes on offensive against YLE over corruption allegations

PM denies taking free building materials

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At 9:00 on Tuesday morning, a black car stops at the sidewalk at the statue of the Three Smiths on the corner of Mannerheimintie and Aleksanterinkatu.
      Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (Centre) arrives at the Old Student House to give a speech at an anti-smoking event.
      As soon as he gets out of the car, Vanhanen faces a barrage of questions from reporters asking about allegations put forward on Monday evening on the Silminnäkijä (“Eyewitness”) current affairs television programme on the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE).
     
According to the programme, Vanhanen has received free building materials for his house from a construction company which has contracts with the Nuorisosäätiö foundation, which has contributed to the election campaigns of the Centre Party.
      Vanhanen chaired Nuorisosäätiö from 1981-2003, and he has received election contributions from the foundation.
      “The only thing that I can recognise from this programme is an order which I have made for a Helsinki construction company, and a completely normal invoice should have come from it. I will try to clear this up today”, Vanhanen says.
      He does not give a direct answer when asked if the claim is without foundation.
      “I hope that YLE will put all of its information on the table. This matter has such a great general significance”, Vanhanen said.
     
At 9:05 in the morning the Prime Minister’s Office sends media outlets an invitation for an extraordinary press conference by the Prime Minister at 12:30. The invitation does not specify the topic of the press conference, but most journalists have a general idea.
     
At 11:11 it is reported that the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) will start to investigate the claims in the TV programme about alleged problems.
     
At 12:31 about 80 journalists and photographers are waiting for Prime Minister Vanhanen in a government press room. For all practical purposes, the media outlets of the entire country are represented. Journalists of three television stations and several radio stations are broadcasting live when an extremely tense Prime Minister takes his place.
      Vanhanen gives assurances that his construction projects can bear daylight, even though he might not have all of the receipts from 13 years back.
      He asks somewhat defiantly if anyone thinks that he would risk his political career “for a pile of boards”.
      Vanhanen calls on representatives of YLE TV 2 to bring out facts to support the company’s allegations, and sits with a stony face, waiting for an answer. No representative of the current affairs programme is present.
      Vanhanen stands up before the confused group of journalists and leaves. He does not give any interviews; the reason for his sudden departure is that YLE does not give him any response.
     
At 1:33 PM National Coalition Party leader, Minister of Finance Jyrki Katainen tells a group of journalists lurking outside the rear entrance of Parliament that he “cannot be a judge” in the matter.
      He does not want to make any guesses. With a certain amount of embarrassment he says that he hopes that the matters will be cleared up as quickly as possible - “the faster, the better”.
      Katainen talks about “serious accusations”, and about a situation that is difficult for all - “including the person himself”, meaning Prime Minister Vanhanen.
     
At 2:00 PM Vanhanen appears before journalists in Parliament after holding a negotiation with leading government members on a government statement on reform of legislation on campaign funding.
      He repeats to the cameras the challenge that he put to YLE: he wants more detailed information on what YLE meant when it spoke about free building materials. Vanhanen urges YLE to come up with information within an hour or two, but does not specify what the consequences of non-compliance might be.
      He moves forward, about ten centimetres at a time, toward the main chamber of Parliament and the debate on an opposition interpellation motion on care for the elderly. Every stop along the way brings a new question.
      Some of the questions that had been shrugged off before now get an answer of some kind at least. Vanhanen says that he has often sat in meetings with people from the Centre Party making requests for additional money from the Finnish Slot Machine Association (RAY). He says that as he was once the chairman of Nuorisosäätiö, he bears responsibility for matters related to it.
     
At 2:42 PM YLE announces that no detailed evidence will be forthcoming to back up the claims made on the programme.
      Jyrki Richt, head of current affairs journalism at YLE does not rule out the possibility that YLE might give background information on the matter to the police.
      “We will see, as the police investigation continues”, Richt says to Helsingin Sanomat.
      Ari Korvola, the journalist who produced the controversial programme, believes that the value of the construction materials would have been considerable, even by the Prime Minister’s standards. “If I tell more I will betray the trust of my sources.”
     
YLE has promised to protect the identity of the person who disclosed that a construction company had said that he had paid the construction materials bill of Vanhanen’s house project.
     
The information source had nevertheless given a written commitment to make a statement under oath on the veracity of the statement.
      “The commitment applies to a situation in which YLE would face court proceedings over the matter”, Richt explains.
     
At 2:44 PM Reuters news agency sends out an item of news telling the world that the Finnish political system is in paralysis. Experts interviewed by Reuters do not believe, however, that Finland will call new elections.
     
At 3:15 Vanhanen sits and listens to the interpellation debate in Parliament. True to form, he has taken off his glasses while going through his papers. It appears that he is not concentrating very hard on what he is reading.
      He can sit undisturbed in the ministers’ seats in the chamber. Opposition complaints about care for the elderly seem to be the least of his concerns.
     
At 7:45 PM the Centre Party’s Parliamentary group decide to give YLE until Wednesday at 2:00 PM to put some facts on the table.
      The group sees the accusations in Silminnäkijä to be serious, as it could weaken public confidence in the Finnish government.
      The group feels that YLE could disclose, without violating the confidentiality of its source, how the goods had been transported to Vanhanen’s construction site and when, as well as who donated the goods, and what the value was.
     
At 9:30 PM Vanhanen leaves Parliament after a meeting with his Parliamentary group, which lasted more than three hours. He says that if Silminnäkijä does not deliver its information by the Wednesday deadline, he and his group will conclude that Tuesday’s information was “inaccurate”.

More on this subject:
 YLE clarifies claims over Vanhanen's timber delivery

Previously in HS International Edition:
  YLE claims: PM Vanhanen received building materials from construction company free of charge (29.9.2009)
  Vanhanen refuses to accept sole responsibility for election funding row (28.9.2009)
  Election funding row sparks serious discussion of dissolution of Parliament (24.9.2009)
  Vanhanen got campaign contributions from nonprofit housing foundation (21.9.2009)
  National Coalition Party and candidates to return donations from Nova Group (17.9.2009)
  Prime Minister warns of political crisis stemming from election campaign money affair (21.5.2008)

Helsingin Sanomat