Although Czech President Miloš Zeman tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday, he wants to appoint the new prime minister on Sunday at his residence in Lány Castle near Prague. Petr Fiala and his liberal-conservative-Christian electoral alliance Spolu (Together) won the elections for the House of Representatives in October. Now he is to lead the new government, which will include five parties – from left-wing liberal to extremely conservative.
Fiala said on election night: “We are change”. And the change should finally begin – even if the quarantined president is not actually allowed to receive anyone. Zeman has been vaccinated for the third time, reports Czech television that he has no symptoms. The country had been concerned about the state of health of the president in recent weeks – the appointment of the government depends on him. Zeman was hospitalized on October 10, the day after the election, and had been in intensive care for weeks. The 77-year-old was only released into home care on Thursday morning, and on Thursday evening he went back to the hospital with blue lights.
In just five weeks, the election winners had drawn up their coalition agreement and presented it on November 16. The cabinet list is in place – now everything is waiting for Zeman. But Petr Fiala, chairman of the conservative citizens’ democratic party ODS, will not only have to be careful not to contract the coronavirus when being appointed prime minister. He will also have to face the President.
In the opinion of many experts, he even has to go to a court. Because the president already let it be known from the hospital that he will not appoint all the ministers chosen by the prime minister. Zeman wants to veto you. He’s not entitled to do that, but his predecessor Andrej Babiš put up with something like that. Fiala said he was by the nominees. Now he has to prove how much.
The president scolds political opponents in his dressing gown
“I’ve known Petr for a long time, we are on two terms,” said Zeman in the television interview from the hospital. In a dark blue dressing gown with white polka dots, he is once again cursing the press and certain politicians. He had “told Petr that he should just take over the office”. The media agree that this is about Jan Lipavský. The 36-year-old is to become foreign minister. Contrary to Zeman, he has positioned himself in the parliamentary committees for foreign policy and defense against influence from China and Russia.
Fiala will soon have to find a promising candidate for the 2023 presidential election if Zeman no longer runs. He can already count on a political opponent: the previous Prime Minister Babiš very likely wants to run for president himself. But first of all, Babiš, who was in conflict with the EU Commission because of his company holdings, has to join the opposition with his populist party ANO.