Slovak News Back to the news
Zala: Opposition As A Whole Was Defeated in VUC Elections
Sunday 29 November 2009 Zoom in | Print page
(TV Markiza, November 29, 'Na Telo')
The current Opposition as a whole was defeated in the Higher Territorial Unit (VUCs) elections that took place on November 14 and 28, governing Smer-SD MEP Boris Zala said on the TV Markiza's political chat-show 'Na Telo' on Sunday.
"We've got a dominant position in seven out of eight VUCs, therefore we're pleased. Basically, the Opposition parties lost in all regions," said Zala.
"Without any doubt, Smer-SD won the VUC elections," conceded Opposition SDKU-DS vice-chairman Ivan Miklos. However, he noted that his party was the only from the opposition that had improved results compared to the 2005 VUC elections.
"What is a success? We didn't have any governor until now. The way Pavol Freso won in Bratislava is an unequivocal success; I view it to be crucial," said Miklos, adding that the elections in the capital city were not only about Freso and incumbent governor Vladimir Bajan, but also about Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD), who appeared on Bajan's billboards. "Freso defeated not only his rival but also Robert Fico," emphasised Miklos, pointing to the 60 percent of votes received by Freso in he second (run-off) round on Saturday.
"You can't camouflage the defeats in the remaining seven regions," countered Zala. "If the public didn't agree with Smer policies, it would have manifested itself in the elections. But this didn't happen," noted Zala.
"We deem the victory in Bratislava as a turning point. It had to begin somewhere," said Miklos.
The two politicians also touched on alleged buying of Roma votes in Presov region, which was - according to Miklos - massive in the first round two weeks ago, while the police have failed to deal with this.
"The Coalition was buying Roma votes in Presov. We lost there by one vote," said Miklos, referring to the first round of voting on MRPs on November 14. Zala responded that the accusations of vote-buying haven't been confirmed so far.
All rights reserved. Any publishing or further dissemination of press releases and photographs from TASR's resources without TASR's prior written approval constitutes a violation of the Copyrights Act.
