On Wednesday, Health Minister Adam Vojtěch (ANO) warned against hasty loosening of restrictions. He said it was only a matter of time before the Czech Republic would face the same problems as the UK, which is struggling with the Indian mutation of the virus. Vojtěch was responding to a proposal by the head of ODS MPs, Zbyněk Stanjura, who wanted to discuss lifting the pandemic emergency law. Stanjura pointed out that the government was acting illegally in introducing the measures.
“I have a great feeling of déjà vu. I think the only thing left is the celebration on the Charles Bridge. The same debate was a year ago. (…) And we know what happened in October, when colleagues from the opposition heavily criticised the government for underestimating the situation and loosening the restrictions too soon,” Vojtěch said in the Chamber of Deputies.
He was referring to the event on the Charles Bridge, which its organizers wanted to use in June 2020 to say goodbye to the coronavirus crisis. Among the participants were, for example, former Czech MP Dominik Feri (ex-TOP 09) and former MP and current senator Miroslava Němcová (ODS). According to Prague mayor Zdeněk Hřibo (Pirates), no outbreak of disease was recorded by the sanitary authorities in connection with the event.
Vojtěch was Health Minister at the time, and after his resignation in the autumn he returned to office this spring.