Kollar: Slovakia Needed New Party, Revolutionary Changes in Economy Required

Bratislava, 10 September (TASR) - Slovakia needed a new political party, and the 'old' ones should retire from politics, as the situation in the country is the result of their work, said Zoroslav Kollar, the leader of the extra-parliamentary Right to Truth party, on the 'Studio TASR' programme on TASR TV. Kollar believes that Slovakia needs very radical, revolutionary changes, particularly in the economic sphere. He rejected the suggestion that his entry into politics was an attempt to seek revenge in connection with his conviction in 2022. "My decision to enter politics came about absolutely spontaneously. It stemmed from dissatisfaction with the current political establishment, the current government and its failure to keep its political and election promises. At first, I only had the idea of setting up a kind of a civic platform that would give voice to the dissatisfaction of Slovak citizens in the public space. My friends and colleagues later persuaded me to try setting up a political party," said Kollar, adding that he'd never considered joining any existing political party. According to its leader, the Right to Truth is a conservative, pro-Slovak and from the economic viewpoint right-wing party. It currently has some 350 members and wants to focus more on the regions than on Bratislava. "We have some 100-200 applications that are currently being vetted, as we are selecting members rather than recruiting them," stated Kollar. He said that the party held its founding congress on 15 January and that its next congress will take place after the combined local and general elections. According to Kollar, the main focus at present should be on the economy. He believes that Slovakia is just a step away from sovereign bankruptcy, and if nothing changes, it could end up worse off than Greece. He said that his party has a specific plan for economic recovery. The state must start making drastic cuts to its own spending, and there's a need to streamline the public sector. For example, the number of ministries should be reduced and the structure of government offices and organisations under the ministries' remit should be streamlined. He argued that this would enable the state to save huge sums of money. Kollar said that his party has an ambition to make it into parliament in the next general election. It's too early at this stage to say whether it will contest the elections independently or as part of a coalition, he said, adding that it would prefer to run on its own, however. When it comes to the combined local and regional elections, Kollar said that the party is fielding almost 290 candidates across Slovakia. He views these elections as a test. According to him, the party didn't actively seek to form coalitions, although it has joined them in some areas. "Where we were approached, and where the parties were at least partly aligned with us in terms of their programmes, we joined coalitions," he said, noting that Right to Truth was approached by parties of the governing coalition. ko/df