Ethics commission receives complaint over Matjošaitytė’s alleged advice to Nemuno Aušra

LRT reported that Lithuania’s Chief Official Ethics Commission received a complaint on Monday over possible consultations provided by current Central Electoral Commission member Laura Matjošaitytė to the Nemuno Aušra party. VTEK chair Jolanta Bernotaitė confirmed the information to the Delfi news portal.

The complaint alleges that Matjošaitytė may have breached the Law on the Adjustment of Public and Private Interests. After reviewing the information and, if necessary, collecting additional supporting data, the commission will decide whether there are grounds to launch an investigation.

VTEK has 20 working days from the date it receives the complaint to carry out these steps. Bernotaitė previously told ELTA that she had instructed the commission’s Investigations Department to assess publicly available information about the possible consultations.

Delfi also reported on Monday that Matjošaitytė may have advised Nemuno Aušra and helped the party prepare a response to the Central Electoral Commission. The Ministry of Justice said the information should be assessed by VTEK, according to Justice Minister Rita Tamašunienė.

Asked about payment for the services, Matjošaitytė told Delfi that she could not disclose the information because it was covered by professional legal secrecy. The Central Electoral Commission said it had found no expenses for Matjošaitytė’s legal services in Nemuno Aušra’s submitted financial documents.

Several weeks ago, the Central Electoral Commission concluded that Nemuno Aušra and its leader, Remigijus Žemaitaitis, had seriously breached the law by accepting funds from illegal sources during the 2024 parliamentary and presidential election campaigns.

The commission’s investigation found that Nemuno Aušra financed its 2024 parliamentary election campaign through donations from legal entities and through third parties. The commission also said the party had breached the law by accepting and using membership fees paid through third parties, amounting to 4,300 euros, some of which came from a legal entity.

The commission further found that the party financed its campaign through a third party, Robertas Puchovičius, the party’s deputy chairman and head of its election campaign headquarters. He allegedly acted as an intermediary in transferring a combined 24,200 euros from the companies Tvari statyba and Lajota to finance Nemuno Aušra’s parliamentary election campaign.