Promised to resign after the 50 million euro scandal, but stayed: head of the State Forests Council changed her mind about leaving

The chairwoman of the board of the state enterprise Latvijas valsts meži (LVM / Latvian State Forests) Zane Drinķe did not fulfill her publicly announced promise to resign at the end of May after the scandal surrounding possible illegal support for wood processing enterprises. According to the Latvian Radio program "Open Files," data from the Enterprise Register indicates that Drinķe still heads the LVM board. She explained to journalists that circumstances had changed since her resignation announcement. According to Drinķe, she informed the representative of the LVM shareholder about her willingness to leave the position, but after the evaluation of the board's work was completed, an agreement was reached for her to continue in her role. In making the decision, it was taken into account that shortly before this, Drinķe had won the competition for the position of board chair, and the enterprise was at that moment left without top management. ### Investigating possible damage to the state of 50 million euros The story is linked to a criminal case being handled by the Prosecutor General's Office. The investigation is examining the circumstances of possible abuse of office and inaction by officials in providing support to wood processing enterprises. The criminal proceedings were initiated in March. The investigation is being conducted in two main directions. The first concerns officials of the Ministry of Agriculture who, according to the investigation, may have abused their office to obtain illegal support for wood processing enterprises. The second direction is related to possible inaction by LVM officials. The investigation is checking whether they could have prevented damage to the state but did not take the necessary actions. The estimated damage to the state is about 50 million euros. This amount is the subject of the investigation, not a court-established amount of damage. ### The case involves a former minister and enterprise leaders In May, procedural actions were carried out against ten individuals. Among them are former Minister of Agriculture, now Saeima deputy Armands Krauze (SCP), former state secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture Raivis Kronbergs, current state secretary Girts Kruminsh, and ministry employee Ilze Silamikele. Also involved in the investigation are former chairman of the LVM board Peters Putnins, board chair Zane Drinķe, and advisor to the board chair Valdis Luks. Additionally, the case includes the vice president of the Latvian Federation of the Wood Processing Industry Kristaps Klaus, an employee of the enterprise Pata Strenči, Saeima deputy Reinis Muižnieks, and the owner and manager of Pata Uldis Mierkalns. The investigation is examining possible complicity in the abuse of office by Mierkalns and other individuals who are not state officials. At the same time, no preventive measures have been applied to any of the ten individuals, as such measures can only be applied to individuals with the procedural status of a suspect or accused. ### Drinķe may remain in office until 2031 Currently, the LVM board consists of three members. It is chaired by Zane Drinķe, whose term expires in February 2031. The board also includes deputy chair Martiņš Lidums and Jānis Teteris. Latvijas valsts meži manages state-owned forest lands. The sole owner of the enterprise is the Latvian state, and the holder of its shares is the Ministry of Agriculture. In 2025, LVM's turnover amounted to 604.6 million euros, an increase of 3.2% compared to the previous year. The enterprise's profit grew by 37.7% and reached 206.7 million euros.