Agriculture Minister Richard Takáč (Smer) hugs PM Robert Fico as he arrives at the field in Voderady, near Trnava, on July 8, 2024. (source: Sme - Marko Erd)
Three days after making his first public appearance and 55 days following the shooting attack that left him seriously injured, Prime Minister and Smer party leader Robert Fico decided to visit farmers in a field outside Bratislava.
His brief trip to Voderady near Trnava highlighted ongoing health issues, though the specific nature of these issues remains undisclosed. Using a French crutch, he stepped out of a limousine. It was the first time the prime minister was seen walking, albeit with difficulty.
“I hope that by August 20 (the anniversary of the Warsaw Pact invasion of communist Czechoslovakia in 1968 to suppress democratisation efforts, Ed.), I’ll be able to jump rope,” he joked.
During his press briefing, Prime Minister Fico emphasised Slovakia’s aim for self-sufficiency, rejecting “modern trends” and asserting that certain Ukrainian crops on the “sanctions list” will not enter the Slovak market. Acknowledging the reality of climate change, he noted that the harvest now begins a month earlier. Fico also proudly stated that Slovakia is closing the gap on the EU’s standard of living, 20 years after joining the union.
Fico declined to field questions from journalists, a practice not new to him. He refuses to talk to selected serious media outlets because he considers them biased. In 2016, during his participation in the harvest, he sharply rebuked a journalist.
“Please, don’t bother us. We’re in the middle of the harvest,” he then said.
On Monday, he refrained from attacking anyone. Instead, against a backdrop of American tractors and German harvesters, he expressed gratitude to tractor and harvester operators, as well as others in the agricultural sector.
