Slovak Government Provides €80,000 Bailout for Rock Festival With Ties to Ruling Party MP

The Slovak government, led by Prime Minister Robert Fico, has allocated €80,000 to rescue the Rock pod Kameňom music festival, a regional event that has notable connections to Fico's ruling Smer-SD party. Smer-SD, a social-democratic party that returned to power in 2023, holds a parliamentary seat representing the region where the festival takes place, raising questions about potential political favoritism in the allocation of public funds. The local MP's parliamentary assistant is known in the area as an enthusiastic and tireless promoter of the festival, a connection critics may view as a conflict of interest. The funding decision comes as part of broader government support measures, but the overlap between the beneficiary event and the ruling party's local political network has drawn attention in the region.