Majersky: Conservatives and Progressives Would Be Able to Work Together in Gov't

Bratislava, 5 January (TASR) - Opposition Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) leader Milan Majersky in an end-of-year interview for TASR has said that he believes conservatives and progressives would be able to work together in a potential future government. Majersky hopes that the Christian Democrats, as conservatives, will be able to "breathe more easily" thanks to the latest amendment to the Slovak Constitution. However, he stressed that progressives mustn't aim to push through certain things that go against the conscience and beliefs of KDH. "The voters will decide what kind of governing coalition will emerge from the next general election based on how many votes they give to individual parties. In the name of KDH, I can say that we were part of the successful governments that got Slovakia into the European Union, into NATO, achieved the greatest economic progress, and we governed in them with both liberals and social democrats, and I think that they were good governments. After all these years, it can happen again," stated Majersky. Majersky once again ruled out post-election cooperation with Smer-SD. "Robert Fico has had the opportunity to convince us four times that he's a good premier, that he knows how to govern and manage this country well. I will speak for myself, but also for KDH, by saying that he's failed to convince us," stated Majersky, referring to Slovakia's decay under Fico's leadership. He pointed to a decimated economy, many families in the poverty zone and unkept promises; for example, the one concerning the highway to Kosice. "We can't be in a government with him. I'm convinced that this is a good decision. People need to be offered a new, better and higher-quality solution," he added. He spoke of Voice-SD as an "offshoot of Smer-SD", wondering out loud whether Voice will even make it into Parliament after the next election or whether it will be absorbed by Smer-SD. ko/df