"I insist on my critique. I expect accuracy, truthfulness and candour from the president. This is not about Pahor, [Marjan] Šarec or me. It is about the country," Kučan said in an open letter published by the weekly Mladina on Friday.

The statement refers to Kučan's alleged role as the man pulling strings behind the scenes, a recurring allegation mostly coming from conservative ranks that has become topical again after people such as Democrat (SDS) leader Janez Janša have claimed Kučan is the man Orchestrating Marjan Šarec's campaign.

Kučan's was also referenced by Pahor, when he said in the first televised debate with Šarec earlier this week that Šarec's campaign was a step backward for it was supported by the same people who have tried to undermine him before.

The implicit reference was to the year 2012, when Pahor coined the term "uncles behind the scenes" to denote people pulling strings behind in the background that was thought to refer mostly to Kučan.

Asked at the debate whether it was true that Kučan came to him ahead of the election in 2011 and told him it was better he step down for Ljubljana Mayor Zoran Jankovič would be installed as prime minister, Pahor said it was "approximately like that".

In the open letter released by Mladina, Kučan acknowledged that he told Pahor ahead of the election he would join an initiative that was to convince Janković to enter the election race.

"But this was not an act from behind the scenes, it was a candid conversation with Borut Pahor that I considered my duty... This was not the installing of anyone's government," Kučan said.

Kučan also expressed surprise at Pahor's statement that criticism of his work was by default support for Šarec, labelling it as "completely unfounded and misleading".

"Such insinuations preserve old political patterns of personal divisions in which transitional politics is looking for the reason for its existence," he said.