Final Word from Wednesday, October 30, 2019

The murder of a Slovak journalist and his girlfriend has had an immeasurable effect on Slovak politics and business. Penta was even forced in Feb. to deny that it ordered the hit: "We categorically rule out the possibility that Jaroslav Haščák was involved in the murder of Ján Kuciak," it said. That denial reminded us of another one nine years ago this week. Nine people died in a fire at Masaryk Station. It was the most tragic fire in Prague in decades. Czech Railways, which owned the land, was forced to deny that arson was involved. "The building was marked for demolition and had practically no value," Spokesman Radek Joklík said. "It is very unlikely that anyone would set fire to it on purpose to, for example, buy the land for cheap." Nine years later, the land is still vacant, but a development is planned there that will significantly improve the quality of the surroundings in that part of Prague. At least that's the way it's described by the main investor, Penta. [ Czech Republic Slovakia ]