PS Blasts Coalition's Legislative Process as Murky

Bratislava, 6 June (TASR) - The opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party on Friday criticised the amendment to the School Act that Parliament passed on Thursday (5 June), arguing that it included so-called 'riders' — unrelated legislative changes that had nothing to do with the original proposal. PS claims that the amendment became a tool for pushing through political deals. "This approach is yet another sign of how little importance the coalition attaches to education. They are tying the issue of education together with administrative fees, health-care matters and other unrelated topics. Despite the fact that House Chair Richard Rasi (Voice-SD) repeatedly claims that he does not allow votes on riders, in this case he didn't hesitate to violate the rules of procedure via objections. This is further proof of the arrogance of power within Fico's coalition and the notion that rules don't apply to them," stated MP Ingrid Kosova (PS). PS objected in particular to a change regarding the appointment of government proxies. Under the new rules, not only the government but also individual ministers will be able to appoint proxies. MP Viera Kalmarova (PS) sees this as a political deal between the Education Ministry and the Slovak National Party (SNS), pointing out that Tourism and Sport Minister Rudolf Huliak (Independent) dismissed state secretary Jan Krisanda, who was then transferred to the Education Ministry, replacing Slavomir Partila as state secretary. "Partila formally remains in the role, but without any powers," she commented. On Thursday, Parliament approved an amendment to school legislation, including changes to other unrelated laws via an additional amending proposal. mf/df