THE RULING coalition terminated its cooperation with New Citizen’s Alliance (ANO) party boss Pavol Rusko on September 1. The Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ), the Hungarian Coalition Party (SMK) and the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) want to complete the election term with Rusko’s opponents within the ANO, the daily SME reported.
The SDKÚ, SMK and KDH agreed to reject Rusko’s demand on behalf of the ANO to replace the culture and health ministers, František Tóth and Rudolf Zajac, respectively, from their posts.
Rusko demanded their replacement after the ministers teamed against him with several ANO deputy chairmen, including Ľubomír Lintner.
The ruling parties informed the ANO as well as President Ivan Gašparovič of their decision.
Analysts expect the ANO to join the opposition. According to ANO spokesperson Magda Krasulová, the recent development is the result of the ANO’s deputy chairmen pursuing personal, rather than party, interests.
Rusko’s alleged conflicts of interest as Economy Minister sparked the current coalition crisis.
The Pravda, based on information from an unofficial source, reported that Jirko Malchárek, an ANO member, will become the new economy minister.
Compiled by Martina Jurinová from press reports
TheSlovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the informationpresented in its Flash News postings.
