No-confidence vote in Culture Minister not yet
Máte problém s prehrávaním? Nahláste nám chybu v prehrávači.
The no-confidence motion in Culture Minister Martina Simkovicova will not be on the calendar of parliament. Parliament chair Peter Pellegrini said he could only find 28 signatures supporting the motion, while 30 are needed.
The Progressive Slovakia party, in a statement, called it „an administrative error. It doesn't change anything, we will submit the proposal to convene an extraordinary meeting to dismiss the minister again, on Tuesday."
The party said Pellegrini could have "politely warned" about it.
Another opposition party, Freedom and Solidarity or SaS, said they submitted, "The maximum number of deputies present, the remaining signatures were supplied by colleagues from PS".
Prime Minister Robert Fico said this was an embarrassment and a shame for the opposition. "We'd never dismiss the minister anyway," he said. "She has sovereign, Slovak, healthy opinions. That's the way a culture minister should be."
Progressive Slovakia and SaS will once again submit a motion today.
A public petition asking for the minister's resignation was signed by almost 190 thousand people. Organizer Ilona Németh said: "We protest against the resumption of cultural cooperation with Russia and Belarus. We protest against these unacceptable steps that threaten our security and is against our solidarity towards Ukraine. We protest against the plans to abolish the Monuments Offices."
