Prague - Former justice minister and now dean of the beleaguered Plzeň law faculty Jiří Pospíšil will have Roman Jurečko's enrollment reviewed.
The issue of express diplomas and buying academic degrees by Czech high-profile figures has lately shaken up the Czech academic community.
Jurečko enrolled in the school at the time Pospíšil was the faculty teacher. The Accreditation Commission for universities that is currently reviewing the scandal has marked Jurečko's enrollment as "doubtful and non-transparent". He was admitted on appeal.
"Yes, I have enrolled after I appealed against being declined," Jurečko told Aktuálně.cz.
"But no one has helped me with that. As soon as they told me that I was not admitted, I filed an appeal against the decision," he added.
The Plzeň faculty used to enroll 60 percent of students in an appeal process. The chairwoman of the Accreditation Commission, Vladimíra Dvořáková said that it served to "mask the high-profile figures", so they could be admitted.
Many of the Czech high profile figures are believed to have completed their degrees at the faculty only in just few months, instead of five years.
Jiří Pospíšil now serves as an acting dean of the faculty after the school management resigned due to the scandal media exposure.
Good friends
Jurečko and Pospíšil are long-standing friends having spent at least three vacations together in Tuscany, Italy. It was in Tuscany where ODS leader Mirek Topolánek was famously photographed in the company of Czech powerful businessmen and lobbyists. Jurečko and Pospíšil distanced themselves from the Tuscany scandal.
Roman Jurečko, businessman and senior member of the Civic Democratic Party, is one of the most influential politicians in the region. Within the party Jurečko is dubbed the "Godfather", having control over the Plzeň region.
Jurečko holds a number of prestigious positions. He is currently a vice-chairman of Plzeň regional club of ODS. He is also a member of the ODS executive board: He also chairs energy giant Plzeňská teplárenská's board of directors.
In 2007, suspicions occurred that Jurečko may have recruited people to become the Civic Democratic Party members to increase the ODS numbers.
Popular with ODS
The law faculty in Plzeň has been popular with other Civic Democratic Party members.
Among those that completed diplomas at the law faculty is former mayor of Plzeň and currently deputy minister of local development Miroslav Kalous. His diploma is among those that are nowhere to be found.
Incumbent MP Marek Benda and mayor of Litvínov Hana Řápková are suspected to have received an express diploma as well. Řápková allegedly graduated without attending a single seminar once.
