Bém talks court Opencard project was above-board

Former Prague mayor Pavel Bém on Tuesday testified before a city court dealing with the case of the multi-purpose Opencard project that provides access to public services. Mr. Bém rejected the claim that the project had been severely overpriced, a conclusion reached by independent auditors. Five of his former subordinates have been charged with abuse of office and violating public procurement rules in connection with the case. Prosecution argues that the contracts signed were highly disadvantageous for Prague and squandered tens of millions of crowns form public funds.