Slovenia Bulletin: Interpellation motion filed vs. government

ponedeljek, avgust 02, 2004

Interpellation motion filed vs. government

On 30 July, 11 members of the SDS and NSi delegations in parliament filed an interpellation motion against the government. The government is accused of poor governance, corruption and failure to fulfil promises. SDS leader Janez Janša was the first of the 11 to sign the motion.

According to the constitution, a group of no less than ten members of parliament can initiate interpellation hearings against the government or an individual minister. The hearings are followed by a vote of confidence; if the government or minister fails the vote, they are impeached and must be removed from office. A simple majority of 46 members of parliament would have to vote no-confidence in order for the action to pass.

However, Janša and NSi leader Andrej Bajuk told a press conference that they will not call for a confidence vote, since elections are not far off. Instead, they say they are merely looking for “a debate and evaluation of the government’s work over the past four years” [STA / 30.07.04 / Opposition wants a debate on Slovene government's work - party leaders, STA / 30.07.04 / Koalicija Slovenija vložila interpelacijo zoper vlado, 24ur / 30.07.04 / Koalicija Slovenija interpelira vlado, Večer / 31.07.04 / Obračun Koalicije Slovenija z vlado].

The government, led by Prime Minister Anton Rop, have 30 days to respond to the motion. Rop has called the motion “a pre-election stunt not seen before in democratic European history.” However, the LDS believes the debate on the interpellation can be used to the ruling coalition’s advantage in the run-up to the October parliamentary elections [STA / 31.07.04 / Opposition's motion against government clearly "pre-election stunt" - Slovene PM, Pop TV / 31.07.04 / Odziv Ropa na interpelacijo, TOL / 02.08.04 / No Rest for the Weary].

Meanwhile, the SNS and SMS have also criticized the interpellation motion. SNS leader Zmago Jelinčič told STA that it is nothing more than an “election campaign move,” while SMS secretary Jože Vozelj said it was “simply ridiculous” [STA / 30.07.04 / Slovene parties criticize interpellation filed by opposition]. Both the SNS and the SMS are in opposition in parliament, together with the SDS, NSi and SLS. The SLS is supporting the motion.