President Rudolf Schuster, after an hour-long meeting with Transport Minister Jozef Macejko, agreed to PM Mikuláš Dzurinda’s demand the minister be fired for his role in a controversial tender for new railway engines.
The president, without consulting with the PM, also temporarily empowered Economy Minister Ľubomír Harach to lead Macejko’s ministry. Dzurinda later rejected this suggestion, announcing that Deputy PM for Economy Ivan Mikloš would take the post.
Under the constitution the president is required to accept the ministerial nominations forwarded by the PM, and has no power to delay or make his own appointments, as he has done in the Macejko case.
Dzurinda’s SDKÚ party, in an evening meeting, also removed Macejko from the party’s list of 150 candidates for September parliamentary elections, on which he had occupied seventh spot. The party also banished MP Peter Kresánek from its ranks.
Kresánek had written a letter leaked to the press two weeks ago in which he seemed to indicate the SDKÚ would profit from the rail tender.
Compiled by Tom Nicholson from press reports.
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
