Benkunskas rejects conflict-of-interest concerns over Vilnius Club premises

Vilnius Mayor Valdas Benkunskas says he sees no conflict of interest in a municipal decision concerning premises for the Vilnius Club, LRT reported, citing ELTA. The statement came after Social Democrat Povilas Pinelis asked the Chief Official Ethics Commission to investigate the matter.

Some members of the Vilnius City Council questioned a proposal to provide premises to the organisation, whose president is currently Benkunskas.

“I think common sense will prevail here, despite the politicking. Everything is clearly visible, and there is no conflict of interest,” Benkunskas told reporters on Tuesday.

He said his role as the club’s president was connected to his position as mayor and was not a personal choice, but a requirement arising from the Vilnius Club’s internal rules. However, ELTA reported that the club’s charter contains no provision requiring the Vilnius mayor to serve as its president.

In June, the city council considered a proposal to lease the club 30 square metres of premises at 2–7 Trakų Street without a competition. The proposed rent was 13 euros per square metre per month, or 390 euros in total.

The Vilnius Club currently uses 694 square metres at 2 Trakų Street under a no-cost loan-for-use arrangement. The additional premises are an emergency exit in the same building as the club’s headquarters, according to Vilma Lajauskaitė, head of the city administration’s Real Estate Department. She said existing laws allowed the premises to be provided without a competition.

Ben­kunskas, who chaired the council meeting, and former mayor Remigijus Šimašius, a Vilnius Club member, recused themselves from consideration of the issue after other politicians asked them to do so. The council approved the proposal at the presentation stage.

Pinelis told ELTA that the issue should not have been considered even after Benkunskas recused himself, because the mayor did so only after being asked by other participants. He also said the subordination of municipal officials who prepared the proposal to the mayor could have influenced the decision.

The Vilnius Club has operated for almost 28 years and organises cultural and historical memory initiatives, conferences and commemorations. It also awards prizes for academic work related to Vilnius. Former mayors Artūras Zuokas and Remigijus Šimašius are among its members.