The president stated that he has no intention of appointing one of the proposed candidates for new ministers, presented to him this afternoon by the head of the winning SPOLU coalition, Petr Fiala. Zeman is expected to veto the candidate, but he didn’t reveal their name. He will suggest to Fiala to replace the specific candidate or run the ministry by himself.
It is speculated that Zeman has reservations about the nomination of Jan Lipavský of the Pirates as minister of Foreign Affairs. However, Petr Fiala commented after he met with the president that he does not intend to accept any changes in the proposed cabinet composition.
Czech President Miloš Zeman is ready to name Petr Fiala of the Civic Democrats as Czech prime minister on Friday, November 26, in Lány, Fiala said on Wednesday immediately after meeting with the president in the Military University Hospital in Prague.
“I expect to be released from the hospital in a few days and leave for Lány,” President Zeman announced. He intends to resume work there, and it is estimated that he can return to his duties entirely within a month. After the appointment of Petr Fiala as the new prime minister, he will meet with each candidate individually for ten days. The list of these was brought to him on Wednesday by Fiala.
The president also defended his colleagues, led by Chancellor Vratislav Mynář. They are facing a police investigation for suspicions of failing to provide care before Zeman’s October hospitalization. He was taken to the hospital in serious condition on October 10 by a special ambulance equipped with an ICU.
“Chancellor Mynář is a great official and a good friend of mine,” Zeman said when asked how he assessed the behavior of his surroundings and how the Castle kept him informed of his health during his hospitalization. He declined to answer additional questions about the topic.
Zeman praised the further tightening of anti-poverty measures that the outgoing cabinet of Prime Minister Andrej Babiš intends to introduce from Monday. According to Zeman, they are helpful, and he advised future PM Fiala to stick with them. On the other hand, Zeman considers the loosening of anti-epidemic measures after the first covid wave to be the only mistake in Babiš’s actions, which he evaluates positively.