Bosses want an end to corruption

“Business elite loses patience with corruption“, headlines Hospodářské noviny, which publishes an interview with Andrej Babiš, one of the Czech Republic’s most influential entrepreneurs. “Our country has been transformed into Palermo under the mafia,” insists the owner of food and agricultural supplier Agrofert, arguing that corruption has stalled reforms and resulted in economic stagnation. According to the industrialist, the current era of corruption began in 2006, with the arrival of the Mirek Topolánek government. He accuses Topolánek and the former mayor of Prague Pavel Bém, among others, of misappropriating state assets, and blames President Václav Klaus for trivialising the problem.

Andrej Babiš calls for the creation of a new ‘Civic Platform’, a reference to the movement for democracy in 1989, “to clean up this environment,” [explains](http:// http://byznys.ihned.cz/c1-52888660-spicky-byznysu-kritizuji-ceskou-korupci-je-to-palermo-kde-vladne-mafie-tvrdi-babis)[*Hospodářské noviny*](http:// http://byznys.ihned.cz/c1-52888660-spicky-byznysu-kritizuji-ceskou-korupci-je-to-palermo-kde-vladne-mafie-tvrdi-babis). And he is not alone: “A group of business men in the country is preparing to invest in the campaign to fight a corrupt system, which includes the police and judiciary,” notes the daily, which cites the example of the anti-corruption fund created by Karel Janeček, the boss of RSJ Algorithmic Trading.