The lead judge on the Constitutional Court, Ivan Fiačan, should resign, said Prime Minister Robert Fico at a press conference on Tuesday. He should take responsibility for the fact that the news of a decision was leaked to the press before it reached the interested parties.
This is unacceptable, and someone should take responsibility, Fico said.
Fico also said that if he had the authority to dismiss the President of the Constitutional Court, he would do so. He does not expect that the current president Zuzana Čaputová will do so, but the new president should, he said.
The President of the Constitutional Court apologized on Wednesday morning and expressed regret for the leak. He said he set up an internal investigation team to look into how the leak happened. But he refused to resign.
Fiačan emphasized that only some elements of the decision reached the press early. He said the judges were just as surprised as everyone else. "But the full, written, decision itself was not leaked,‘ he said.
The leader of the largest opposition party, Michal Šimečka of Progressive Slovakia, reacted later on Tuesday, saying it was ‘outrageous’ that the Prime Minister was threatening the Constitutional Court.
"Fico, when he didn't get what he wanted, is threatening the President of the Constitutional Court in a completely unacceptable way," said Šimečka. He said it is unacceptable in a democratic society.
Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok this morning echoed his Prime Minister’s complaint. But he avoided answering whether he thought the judge should resign.
(TASR)
