Record rains which ravaged parts of central Europe in July caused several rivers in Slovakia to swell and spill over their banks, including the Danuber River, which is shown here engulfing low-lying lands near Bratislava. The floods in Slovakia killed one person and caused an estimated 2.1 billion Sk ($64 million) in damage, mainly to farmlands.Alan Hyža
Slovak Premier Vladimír Mečiar would be recalled if a national referendum were held on the matter, according to a June poll carried out by the MVK polling agency. On the contrary, President Michal Kováč would survive if a similar hypothetical public vote were held.
In the poll, 35.5 percent of those queried said that they would have voted for removing Mečiar, while 28 percent answered that they would have voted for the prime minister to remain in office.
Another 27 percent would not have taken part in the vote, and 9.5 percent was undecided. For a referendum to be valid, a majority of the electorate must participate. That means Mečiar, whose party gathered by far the most votes in the 1994 national elections, would be recalled, since more than half of those participating would have agreed.
On the other hand, 27.4 percent would agree with removing Kováč, while 35 percent would be against it, with 28.8 percent not taking part and 8.8 undecided.
The poll was carried out between June 23-30 and included data from 1,243 respondents.
The questions were proposed by Róbert Krajňák, an entrepreneur from Stupava who in November 1995 launched a petition drive for Mečiar's removal.
"The margin of error was 2.5 percent," Pavel Haulík, MVK's director, told The Slovak Spectator.
MVK, or Metodicko-výskumný kabinet (Methodic Research Cabinet), was founded in 1953 under the auspices of Slovak Radio.
The agency made a name for itself in the 1992 national elections, when its projections of a Mečiar victory bested the predictions of its polling competitors, including the renowned German company Insam. MVK became a private, independent entity on July 1, 1996.
