DUŠAN KUMER, STATE SECRETARY

Dušan Kumer was born on 7 February 1949 in Maribor. After he had completed secondary technical school of electrical engineering in Maribor, he enrolled in electrical engineering studies, which he did not finish. In that period, he was actively engaged in the work of Maribor Student Organisation. After the military service, he worked for the Information Service of the Central Committee of the League of Communists of Slovenia until 1986; in the time of the League of Communists reform, he was elected secretary of Šiška Municipal Committee of the League of Communists of Slovenia; after the 1990 elections, he headed Šiška municipal branch of the Social Democratic Renewal Party until 1992. Following a unification congress of three parties held by the Social Democratic Renewal, the Worker's Party and the Social Democratic Union and the group of members from the Democratic Party of Pensioners and the Socialist Party, he took the position of secretary-general of the United List of Social Democrats in 1993. For almost ten years he was engaged as an external lecturer on communications at Training Centre Poljče; he served two terms as municipal councillor in Ljubljana. He further extended his experience by taking the position of president of the supervisory board of the Ljubljana Market and president of the supervisory board of the Tivoli Hall. As a sports fan, he faced the challenge and took on the chairmanship of the Olimpija Swimming Club and the Olimpija Academic Water Polo Club. In 2004, he was elected Deputy to the National Assembly and was a member of a number of its working bodies. He was head of the Commission for Supervision of the Security and Intelligence Services and chaired the Commission for Public Office and Elections. In 2010, his fellow Social Democrats Deputy Group members entrusted him with the task of chairing the Deputy Group. He frequently publishes his vast experience and observations in the columns. From 1990 to 1992, he was director of the newspaper Evropa. He is a father to six children. He lives with his wife, son and daughter in Ljubljana.