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Radicova: Credibility of Coalition Parties More Important Than Numbers
Sunday 02 January 2011 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, January 2 (TASR) - The performance of a coalition doesn't primarily depend on the number of its members, as it only takes one coalition partner to cause havoc, Prime Minister Iveta Radicova (SDKU-DS) has told TASR in an interview. It's the credibility of the partners that matters most, she added.
Radicova pointed out that there have already been Coalitions in Slovakia which consisted of more members than the current one, which has four parties – officially. She recalled that the 1998 Government formed by the Slovak Democratic Coalition originated from five parties. Plus the ethnic-Hungarian SMK (itself a product of merged parties) was part of it, and there was also the Slovak Democratic Left (SDL) and the Party of Civic Understanding (SOP) in the coalition. "During the past four years, (when there were) three coalition partners [Smer-SD, Slovak National Party (SNS) and LS-HZDS], we had a situation when my predecessor [Smer-SD chairman Robert Fico] had to use statements against [LS-HZDS chairman] Vladimir Meciar that if he (Meciar) doesn't step back, he (Fico) will cancel his amnesties," she said by way of illustrating her point that smaller does not necessarily mean less complicated.
In this connection, Radicova rephrased the words of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who answered the question whether it is easier to chair a left-right or centre-right coalition by saying that this doesn't matter. According to Merkel, who has headed both types of coalition, everything depends on what situation the executive head inherits. Radicova pointed out that the situation is different when the state is in good economic shape or when it is in red figures. Debts bring about the necessity to carry out unpopular measures that many politicians wouldn't like to be attached to.
When it comes to Radicova's own party, she says she can rely on it when need be. "Whenever I have doubts, I have my stronghold in SDKU-DS," she assured, adding that she can't complain about a lack of support from the party, even though she is only its vice-chair with Mikulas Dzurinda chairing it. "I won the primary election for the election leader, which is probably the best benchmark for measuring support among the party members," she added.
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