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Vozar Says MPs Cannot Be Forced to Approve Laws According to Referendum
Saturday 17 July 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, July 17 (TASR) - Constitutional lawyers deny claims made by their colleagues on behalf of the Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party that the results of a referendum are binding on lawmakers who should vote in favour of laws which put in practice such referendum goals.
The referendum which was declared by president for September 18 at the instigation of SaS features six questions of public concern such as downsizing the number of legislators from 150 to 100 and capping the price of purchased government cars at €40,000. Jozef Vozar of the Slovak Academy of Sciences's Institute of the State and Law said that lawmakers are guaranteed a right by the constitution to vote solely based on their conscience and may not be forced to vote for the laws that put referendum goals into practice.
He admitted that the referendum results is a powerful political signal. "Referendum outcome is a recommendation, which has some weight but if the lawmaker doesn't act in line with it, he is not subject to any penalty," he said.
Vozar was echoed by Ernest Valko, a lawyer, saying that lawmakers cannot be forced into voting in line with referendum results. "There is a major legal issue. The Constitutional Court had in the past found that a referendum carries some implications but the finding does not spell them out... On the other hand the constitution explicitly prohibits an imperative mandate meaning that lawmakers may not be bound by anyone's commands," said Valko.
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