Lithuanian PM Resigns After Pressure On Business Relations With Brother-in-law Company

Lithuanian Prime Minister Gintaputan Paluckas/PHOTO via Wikimedia Commons

JAKARTA - Lithuanian Prime Minister Gintaputa Paluckas has decided to resign after facing pressure related to his business relationship with a company owned by his brother-in-law.

Paluckas said his past mistakes had hampered his government's performance, prompting him to make quick and convincing decisions to resign.

The opposition parties in the Baltic country criticized Paluckas for business transactions in which the company he co-owned sold electric batteries to other companies owned by his brother-in-law, in an agreement financed by a government agency.

Paluckas has in recent weeks denied making a mistake.

The next prime minister will be elected by the Social Democrat Paluckas party, which holds 52 of the 141 seats in Parliament, said Mazvydas Jastramskis, a political analyst at the Institute of International Relations and Political Sciences Vilnius.

The head of government is appointed by majority in Parliament, and the Social Democrats will find it difficult to negotiate to get support from their two coalition partners, the centre-left For Lithuania and the populist Nemunas Dawn, who are at odds.

"Other parties do not seem eager to join the government," said Jastramskis.

Last week, Paluckas' brother-in-law company said it would reject government funding but denied wrongdoing, saying it had made purchases from the Paluckas business after an open tender.

The For Lithuania Party on Wednesday threatened to leave the ruling coalition unless Paluckas stepped down, saying its position could not be maintained.