Sutaj Estok: Legitimate to Have Democratic Political Competition in Slovakia

Bratislava, 10 June (TASR) - I consider it to be legitimate for Slovakia to have democratic political competition, and I don't like discussions about a possible single ruling party, head of the Voice-SD party and Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok stated on Tuesday in response to Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD), who spoke in Uzbekistan about the need to reform the political system and reduce the number of political parties in Slovakia. "I haven't noticed that the democratic system in Slovakia is changing. We're part of the European Union. I think that nobody has invented anything better than democracy, and in democratic parliamentary elections everybody has the opportunity and the right to choose whom they put their trust in. That's why I'm rather disturbed by activities that question the will of the people," Sutaj Estok told a press conference on Tuesday, pointing out that just after the last parliamentary election, people at opposition protests chanted for Fico to leave power, even though it was shortly after he had formed a government on the basis of the election. "I don't like such activities. In the same way, I don't like activities that say there should be only one ruling party," he added. Parliamentary Chair Richard Rasi (Voice-SD) drew attention to a proposal by which the Voice-SD party wants to leave out a provision regarding a single electoral district for parliamentary elections from the Slovak Constitution. "So that people in the regions all over Slovakia can elect their representatives. So, our answer is this proposal, which in turn strengthens democracy and the decision-making of people in the regions as to who will represent them in Parliament. So that it won't happen that we'll have a period in which 71 out of the 150 MPs are from Bratislava and its surroundings," stressed the House chair. Fico said in Uzbekistan on Monday (9 June) that Europe will need to talk about reforming the political system based on free democratic elections, as the path taken by Uzbekistan, Vietnam and China is an extremely economically efficient one, and countries with governments made up of many political parties aren't competitive with them in the long term. The premier added that Slovakia would also benefit from a reduction in the number of political parties. am/df