Half of Czechs feel that Justice Minister Pavel Blažek of the main ruling party ODS (ECR), undermines public trust in the judiciary, according to a new poll that comes after about three-quarters of the junior coalition party, the Pirate Party (Greens/EFA), called for his resignation.
Blažek’s standing is being questioned, with 51% of Czechs surveyed saying he undermines public trust in the judiciary, while only 20% disagreed with such a statement, the survey conducted by the Median agency for Czech Radio reads.
Blažek has come under fire recently, with the junior member of the coalition citing his possible conflict of interest about a corruption probe involving municipal flats in Czechia’s second-largest city of Brno, and to some of his controversial steps, which did not go unnoticed by anti-corruption organisations in recent months – including, as reported by Seznam Zprávy, that Blažek had obtained part of a classified police file on a case in which his fellow party members were prosecuted.
The vote in which the majority of the Pirates called for the minister’s resignation was initiated by Pirate MEP Markéta Gregorová.
“Yes, I think he should draw consequences from the conflict of interest he potentially has (…) and resign so that he does not undermine confidence in this government,” she told TN.cz in June.
Gregorová still seems to want to handle this affair with caution, as she does not want this to lead to Pirate Party ministers leaving the government.
“The purpose of the Pirates in this government is to fulfil the Pirate programme. And as long as we can do that, I think it makes sense for them to stay in the government,” she said.
Blažek refused to resign for now and can still count on the support of Prime Minister and ODS party leader Prime Minister Petr Fiala.
(Ondřej Plevák | EURACTIV.cz)
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