He cited the recent dispute over the national council's powers in choosing a new education minister. "I can't see any space for a consensus to be reached on the powers the SZ national council and other bodies should hold in this case, where a candidate for education minister is being nominated," Strasky, the SZ expert in energy issues, told CTK. SZ chairman Martin Bursik called Strasky's step as "political pressure by which the national council wants to gain more space Czech Greens did not nominate anyone for minister - Bursik ...
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Drought to be one of discussed issues during Czech EU presidency ... [powers] than what it is entitled to according to the party statutes." Strasky described the situation in the national council and in the whole SZ, a junior partner in the Czech centre-right government, as tense. "The problems that might have existed before, have been triggered off by the situation around the Education Ministry," he said. SZ chairman Martin Bursik told CTK he regretted Strasky's decision, but disagrees with Strasky's opinion that the national council is empowered to nominate ministers. He said the 60-member can hardly assess and pick ministerial candidates.
"The party board is really primarily responsible for this," he added. Bursik said he hoped that the national council's new chairperson, yet to be elected, will help stabilise the situation. He said Strasky's references to "disputes over the division of powers" are strange as the national council's powers are clearly defined in the SZ statutes, which say nothing about its being authorised to nominate ministers. The post of education minister has been vacant since early October when SZ deputy chairwoman Dana Kuchtova, an intra-party opponent of Bursik, resigned over problems with the preparation of certain EU operational programmes. Bursik wants the new minister to be chosen the SZ board along with SZ deputies. On Monday, Bursik wants to present the SZ's candidates to coalition parties' leaders. SZ bodies have nominated MP Olga Zubova, but Bursik wants to present a different candidate of his own, reportedly a university representative, whose name keeps secret. Bursik has criticised Kuchtova's previous performance as minister. Many in the SZ reproach him for not having backed Kuchtova. Bursik, as temporary acting education minister, reportedly invited certain experts, previously sacked by Kuchtova, back to the ministry, and sacked others whom Kuchtova had hired, such as deputy education minister Martin Tichy. On Friday, two SZ deputies, including Zubova, said they might not support the government's 2008 budget bill in the lower house's final vote without certain modifications.
(Ceske Noviny)
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