Parvel Pruunsild recently gave an interview where he claimed the criminal investigation into Isamaa's funding is part two of your personal vendetta. Have you been giving instructions to ISS officers about what and whom they should be investigating?

I watched that yesterday and two thoughts came to mind. First, I felt sorry and sad. If one of the major donors to Estonia's most popular political party truly believes that this is how a justice system built over the last 30 years operates in Estonia, that's deeply saddening. Why is he saying this? Is this the kind of pressure that comes with a criminal investigation? People react in different ways: some break, some start justifying themselves, some begin imagining things and end up drifting into a world of delusion.

But the more serious thought I had was that this is actually dangerous. If someone like the editor-in-chief of Postimees or a major political donor truly thinks this way, then they'll continue thinking this way even when the party they support is in power. They believe that's how things work. But that's not how they work — not at all!

But was there anything criminal about Isamaa's funding that warrants investigation?

We don't know that. Of course, there were plenty of questions raised and those were already discussed three or four years ago. We've answered all the journalists' questions. There were, naturally, questions about things like where the cash in the tents was coming from or why money was being paid to certain young people. But for us, this is a story from four years ago.

Any kind of illegal party funding absolutely needs to be investigated. There's no question about that.

Are you prepared to be called in to give statements or share information yourself?

Absolutely. I've already been in once as a witness and given my statement.

In this same case?

Yes. Well, I assume it's the same case. I don't know for sure. It's unlikely there are tons of different investigations going on. But that's exactly what needs to happen.

Looking at the bigger picture again — why have we spoken so much about party financing? Because it must be transparent. There shouldn't be shell NGOs involved or foreign nationals hauling in money. This is really a question of democracy and the future of the Estonian state.

The Central Criminal Police is conducting procedural actions this week, including interrogations of suspects, in a criminal case investigating whether illegal donations have been made to the Isamaa party, Chief State Prosecutor Taavi Pern said last Friday. As of Tuesday, Isamaa's secretary general Andres Metsoja has been summoned to appear before the Central Criminal Police. According to ERR's information, Parvel Pruunsild has also been called in.

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