Minister Besser dismissed the director of the National Technical Museum

Prague - Minister of Culture Jiří Besser has immediately dismissed the director of the National Technical Museum (NTM) Horymír Kubíček. The reason is the improper handling of public funds. Kubíček allegedly invoiced the museum for fees to which he was not entitled, the minister's secretary Stanislav Brunclík told ČTK. However, Kubíček disagrees with these reasons.
    "We have serious suspicions that public funds were not handled as they should have been at the museum," Brunclík said. Minister Besser stated in the Czech Television show Hyde Park that Kubíček approved an annual bonus for himself of nearly 400,000 crowns, which was half of all funds allocated for bonuses at the museum. Moreover, he invoiced himself 41,000 crowns monthly for external work for the museum. "I do not believe that he is a good steward of public money," Besser stated in ČT.
    Kubíček has protested today's reports that he enriched himself at the museum's expense. "It is an outrageous lie, against which I want to defend myself through legal means. I can personally substantiate all the resources we handled at the museum. I firmly believe that the ongoing audit will clear me," the dismissed director Kubíček stated in a statement in the evening.
    An internal audit is currently taking place at NTM, accompanied by representatives of Transparency International.
    From Monday, an external audit from a renowned auditing company is set to begin at NTM. Its name will be revealed after the opening of the envelopes containing bids from auditing companies for the inspection of property and financial management of the ministry (MK) and the contributory organizations established by it. Besser called on auditing companies to submit their bids at the beginning of the week. The audit is expected to review financial management, procurement processes, and the handling of the ministry's property and the contributory organizations it oversees.
    The museum's management has been taken over by the statutory deputy director Oldřich Rambousek, who will lead the institution until a successor to Kubíček is appointed.
    By the afternoon, Kubíček told ČTK that he believes that there was simply a misunderstanding in communication. "I have never met with the minister, I have not had the opportunity to speak with him. I am convinced that his associates will confirm that our financial management is constantly audited," he said. Later, he also commented on speculations that exhibits had gone missing at the museum. "If anyone had done that, I would be the first to file a criminal report against him," Kubíček stated.
    Kubíček was appointed to the position of General Director of the National Technical Museum in Prague by former Minister of Culture Václav Jehlička on June 1, 2007. Before that, Kubíček worked as the head of the department of culture and heritage protection at the Vysočina Regional Office.
    The technical museum has been closed for nearly four years; the final phase of reconstruction began here at the beginning of the year. The investment costs for this phase, which is expected to end at the beginning of next year, were estimated at 165 million crowns.
    The first phase of reconstruction started in 2003, but unexpectedly ended a year later due to financial issues. The total cost of the completed part was 58 million crowns. At the beginning of 2005, the investment plan for the second phase of reconstruction, valued at 215 million crowns, was approved. During this phase, parts that were in progress in the first phase were completed, especially two floors of offices and the archive space. Subsequently, the construction of the vestibule, foyers on individual floors, stairs, cinema hall, two exhibition halls, and five exhibition spaces was done.
    The budget for the three phases of reconstruction, together with costs for exhibitions, amounts to 572 million crowns, Kubíček stated in October 2008 at a press conference. He indicated that in the outlook for 2016, the construction of a new museum building on the adjoining plot would begin, which would require up to 1.5 billion crowns. Additional storage facilities will be created in Čelákovice, and a railway museum will be built on the site of the former locomotive depot at Masarykovo nádraží. Its construction will cost 500 million crowns.
    According to the annual report from the MK regarding its contributory organizations, in 2009, NTM managed its finances best, obtaining over 3.1 million crowns in its main activities. The ministry noted that the good financial results of NTM last year were influenced by income from property rentals. The first part of the contractual penalty, which was paid to the museum for the late delivery of the building during the reconstruction of the main NTM building, also played a role.