Former Minister of Finance Mart Võrklaev, who played himself in the TV series "Alo," said he took part in the project because he respects the makers and actors involved the series and appreciates good humor. He was not paid for his appearance.

The series takes place at a Tallinn Škoda dealership, Rohe Auto. It was Rohe Auto that shared a clip from the series on social media with a caption urging people to buy a new car before the much-discussed car tax comes into force.

However, the ERJK decided to initiate proceedings against Võrklaev to establish whether this ought to be considered a form of personal political advertising and, if so, who paid for the commercial.

A majority of ERJK members indeed considered the clip to be a form of personal advertising for Võrklaev as a politician, as the clip focused more on him than on the car being advertised, the conversation referred to his work as a mayor, his ministerial portfolio and Võrklaev as the person who introduced the car tax. Väino Linde, who is also a member of the Reform Party disagreed with that view.

"Emotionally, the advertisement largely comes across as an advertisement for Võrklaev as a political figure. Considering that the impact of advertising is an important aspect of assessing borderline situations in which a political message is presented in the guise of other messages," the minutes of the ERJK's meeting state.

Võrklaev: It seemed daft to ban clip's use on social media

Võrklaev told ERR that he had given Point Productions, which produces the series in question, permission to use the clip on Rohe Auto's social media channels at their own behest. "As I know that they have already covered the series on their social media in the past, and since the action in the series takes place in their car dealership, it seemed foolish to refuse. I certainly don't consider it to be political advertising, as the ERJK claims," Võrklaev said.

"The car tax and explaining the issue has been about as useful to my political career over the last year and a half as putting out a fire with gasoline. Only recently, I had further confirmation of this when, on a visit to a car showroom, I was approached by a salesman who asked me if I had come to see them go bankrupt. This is a true story, not a clip from a comedy show," said Võrklaev.

In November, ERR asked Võrklaev whether he thought the Estonian Political Parties Financing Surveillance Committee (ERJK) might consider his role as being a form of advertising that is prohibited for politicians, just as, for example, a private company that had approached former Prime Minister Jüri Ratas was banned from selling souvenirs with his image on them.  At that time, Võrklaev replied that he did not consider the example relevant and compared it to an appearance on entertainment shows such as "Dancing with the Stars" ("Tantsud tähtedega") or "The Masked Singer" "Maskis laulja.")

The ERJK did not consider such comparisons to be relevant as, in their view, the politicians appeared on those shows as ordinary citizens and there were no references to their political activities.

"The Commission considers that in this case political advertising is presented in the guise of commercial advertising and so this issue needs to be clarified. If it is a political advertisement for which the politician or their political party has not paid, then it is a prohibited donation from a legal entity," the minutes state.

Võrklaev disagrees, pointing out that the participation of politicians in media and entertainment projects is very common. "For example, the recent Kanal 2 show 'Minu elu viis' featured a 'special' on politicians, which was broadcast on TV, radio and online," Võrklaev said,

Võrklaev plans to continue with comedy projects

According to Võrklaev, the initiation of the ERJK procedure against him will discourage politicians from taking part in these types of projects in the future and people from inviting them to do so. "Overall, it is our cultural life that will lose out, because up to now  a lot of exciting things have happened in these projects," said Võrklaev.

Point Productions, which produced the series in which Võrklaev appeared is also set to stage a new one-off show at the Alexela Concert Hall in Tallinn this January in which the former finance minister will be "roasted" by comedians and other public figures.

"This is an internationally renowned humor project involving many top politicians, including the future U.S. President. This is the first time that a format like this is being tested out in Estonia, and we hope that if it succeeds, the public roasting of politicians and other public figures will find its place in the Estonian cultural landscape," explained Võrklaev.

Asked whether there is a risk that the ERJK might also consider a performance like this to be a form of forbidden political donation, Võrklaev replied that, in his opinion, going on stage could also be compared to participating in dance and song performances.

"Making fun of politicians in the context of various stand-up comedy performances is quite common – as far as I know, there has never been a problem with this before," he said.

---

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!