When I published this, I got an interesting comment from an MP from the Progressive Party. Eyglo Hardardottir accused me of judging her party harshly, by saying that “after the shenanigans of the last two decades the Progressive Party has put itself in such a position that their ideas are automatically distrusted. That is why it is just about impossible for the government to accept their solution, even though it would never say so openly. The idea is dead in the water even though it keeps rearing its ugly head too often.”
I actually feel sorry for Eyglo’s position. She is a young person who’s been trying to fight her way up the ladder within the party, only to find its credibility long gone out the window. The Progressive Party, whether it likes it or not has earned the people’s distrust in several ways.
- Instead of securing spread ownership of the banks when they were privatized early this decade, the Progressive Party went about securing Bunadarbankinn for its own supporters from the ranks of businessmen who’d later turn the banks into casinos. Included in that group was former minister Finnur Ingolfsson who suddenly became billionaire. The Independence Party promptly handed Landsbankinn to its own and the foundations were laid for an economic disaster. The amazing thing was that the Progressive Party group borrowed money from Landsbankinn to buy Bunadarbankinn and the Independence Party group borrowed money from Bunadarbankinn to buy Landsbankinn.
- 50.000 former insurers with Samvinn Insurance were suprised to know a couple of years ago that they were the righful owners of Gift, a company which had remained active since the merger of two insurance companies in the nineties. And they were delighted to know that Gift was making a massive profit, based on its investments in companies like Kaupthing which were connected to the Progressive Party. But who was controlling Gift and why didn’t the owners know about their successful investment? In 2004 the board decided that the board would elect itself!!! Yes, that sounds ridiculous, and even more so when television news showed leading members of the Progressive Party, including Valgerdur Sverrisdottir and former party leader Jon Sigurdsson come out of a board meeting. Shares were to be distributed but then all of a sudden the economic crash hit Iceland and Gift became bankrupt overnight.
- Bjorn Ingi Hrafnsson, who was assistant to Halldor Asgrimsson at the time of the privatization, and then became the Progressive Party’s only city council rep in Reykjavik was able to borrow 60 million ISK from Kaupthing to buy shares in the bank with the only collateral being the shares themselves. Bjorn is reported to have made 20 million ISK from selling the shares. Bjorn became one of the main players in the REI issue where FL Group was on the brink of being saved from bankruptcy by aqcuiring private rights from Reykjavik Energy with the help of Bjorn and Independence Party mayor Vilhjalmur Vilhjalmsson. After leaving politics he then blatantly ran a talk show last winter at Jon Asgeir Johannesson’s media company, promising to ask difficult questions, which was difficult as he didn’t answer those posed to him. Is now the editor of Pressan.is, owned by mogul Robert Wessman.
- Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson rode in as a saviour last winter and won the position of party leader. His father was the CEO of Kogun, an information technology business owned by the state. When the state (with Progressives in the government) decided to privatize the company, Gunnlaugur popped up at the other side of the table, acquiring a large portion of the shares, regardless of him being an insider. Kogun had large contracts with the US army base in Iceland and Gunnlaugur sold his shares around the same time the Americans announced they were leaving, profiting immensely. Sigmundur apparantly is a billionaire himself from his family’s previous ownership in Kogun.
- And now recently, the Progressive Party pops up again regarding the sale of HS Energy to Magma in a blatantly untransparent deal where the benefits for a nation in distress are hard to see.
Would it be logical to assume that if Icelanders have trust issues with the Progressive Party then it is perfectly understandable?
But feeling sorry for the people who tread in the footsteps of such greats as Halldor Asgrimsson, Finnur Ingolfsson, Bjorn Ingi Hrafnsson, Oskar Bergsson, Valgerdur Sverrisdottir, Jon Sigurdsson, Siv Fridleifsdottir and their like is of little significance.
The idea of 20% restructuring across the board of loans put forth by the party was announced in campaign season. Chanting “20%” over and over again is much more effective than proposing multi layered and complex solutions that might be fair and positive. The Progressive Party knows this because they have experienced success with a similar chant of “90%” in the 2003 Althingi election. A fading party rescued a fair amount of their seats in Althingi by promising 90% mortgages, unheard of the time in Iceland. That happened to be around the same time the inflation-inducing Karahnjuka Dam project was underway and the privatization of the banks, all at the same time and all in the name of the Progressive Party and the Independence Party. No wonder a bubble formed.
The Progressive Party has indicated that it operates for the benefit of a small group of businesspeople, and a small group of people who will do their bidding for a seat at the power tables. If that assessment of the party hurts its MP’s then I can only ask of them to get to work on changing that image.
I am not holding my breath in the meantime.
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September 19th, 2009 → 2:42 pm @ Dadi
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