BRATISLAVA, November 3, (WEBNOVINY) — When asked about the possibility that the SDKU-DS could sink the election of the new prosecutor general by participating but not supporting any of the candidates in the second round, the Parliament Speaker and SaS party leader Richard Sulik admitted that parliament might not elect a prosecutor general for next term in the second round of the election on Thursday. In such case, according to Sulik, a new election would take place in December. Sulik also admitted that the position of the largest party in the governing coalition, the SDKU-DS and its chairman Mikulas Dzurinda, is the reason why the coalition was unable to agree on one candidate. SaS is not planning to change its approach and will continue supporting the candidate agreed upon with the other coalition parties. Two candidates – Eva Misikova and Dobroslav Trnka made it to the second round.
The Slovak Parliament unsuccessfully attempted to elect a new Prosecutor General on Wednesday. Eva Misikova, a candidate supported by SaS, KDH and MOST-HID received 49 votes; incumbent Prosecutor General Dobroslav Trnka, nominated by both Stanislav Janis (SDKU-DS) and Mojmir Mamojka (SMER-SD) received 70 votes. 149 MPs were present at the voting, one vote was not valid. Jan Hrivnak, nominated by SDKU-DS MP Jana Dubovcova, received 28 votes, from all SDKU-DS MPs. Two nominees with highest number of votes more to the second round, as none received more than fifty percent of votes of MPs present in the first round.
Sulik considers it completely normal that some SaS MPs were making photographs ballot papers of how they voted before the secret ballot. “There were some doubts that SaS, which took the matter most seriously, will be the target of suspicions about for whom [the SaS deputies] voted or did not vote. Some of SaS MPs decided to make a photo. Now they have it and that’s it. I did under no circumstances demand it from them,” stated Sulik. He pointed out that it is not illegal at all.
Opposition SMER-SD MP Jana Lassakova said that during her three terms in parliament she cannot recall seeing MPs in a secret ballot taking photographs of the ballot paper together with their parliamentary ID to have proof for their coalition partners . “It were SaS deputies. I’ve seen them on my own when I went to vote. Even the Speaker of Parliament laid his ballot together with his MP ID down and made a photograph of them. I think this is a very strange approach of a state official to a secret ballot,” Lassakova noted. According to her this is a very bad approach of the coalition towards supposedly new political culture. It is also an illustration to how a secret ballot can be misused.
Lassakova is satisfied with the outcome of the vote. SMER-SD MPs had full liberty regarding whom to vote, but
all of them voted for Trnka. Lassakova assumes they’ll act similarly in the second round this Thursday.
SITA