Pecina: The competition for the NK building should be canceled by the ministry

Prague - The Ministry of Culture should cancel the international architectural competition for the new building of the National Library if it thinks that the competition was not conducted properly. Martin Pecina, head of the Office for the Protection of Competition (ÚOHS), told today's Právo. “I also think (that the competition was not in order),” he stated, adding that his office does not have the authority to evaluate the competition as it had beforehand acknowledged an exemption from the law. The competition was won by the controversial design of Jan Kaplický.
    The ÚOHS has already dealt with the library case twice in the past. The initiative came from architects who also participated in the competition. However, the antimonopoly office rejected both cases on the grounds that it does not have the authority to examine a competition held according to the rules of the International Union of Architects. The new initiative was submitted by the Deputy Minister of Culture, František Mikeš.
    Pecina stated in today's Právo that the international competition was definitely not in order according to the criteria of Czech law. “The clients, however, said that they would apply an exemption for such a significant contract. And we acknowledged this because they had the right to make use of exceptions. From that moment on, we do not have the authority to oversee it,” he explained.
    According to Pecina, the new National Library building based on Jan Kaplický's design will never be constructed in Prague's Letná because the current design contradicts the zoning plan. According to him, the current Prague council would never approve a change in the zoning plan. “But nobody will tell Mr. Kaplický this openly. No one wants to take responsibility because they might appear uncultured. So they are waiting for me to prohibit it, and for me to look uncultured,” he added.
    The office claims it has never dealt with a similar issue, and Pecina has therefore unofficially asked European officials in Brussels for advice. His office reportedly will not reconsider its position until it receives an answer from Brussels that the exemption in the case of the National Library cannot be applied. So far, he has allegedly had a counter-report prepared regarding the report from the Ministry of Culture. “Once I receive it, I will familiarize myself with it and make an official inquiry in Brussels,” Pecina added.
    For several months, a team from the National Library and a group of experts has been dealing with the circumstances of the building based on the controversial design by Jan Kaplický that won the international architectural competition. At its final meeting at the end of February, it did not make a decision and stated that it would wait for the statement from the antimonopoly office. It is not clear whether it would be possible to announce a public contract based on the results of the international architectural competition.