(Prague, Jan 19 (CTK))
The opposition failed to topple the coalition government of PM Petr Fiala (Civic Democrats, ODS) again, as the MPs of all five coalition parties voted against expressing the no confidence in the cabinet today. Only the senior opposition ANO and junior opposition Freedom and Democracy (SPD) MPs voted in favour.
The total of 81 present ANO and SPD members voted no confidence, but 102 coalition MPs voted against it and other 17 MPs were excused.
The opposition was very unlikely to vote no confidence in the government from the very beginning as the government coalition holds a majority of 108 MPs in the 200-seat house and at least 101 votes are needed to vote no confidence.
The cabinet, comprised of the ODS, Christian Democrats (KDU-CSL) and TOP 09 along with the Mayors and Independents (STAN) and Pirates, will thus continue to rule with the confidence of the lower house of the Czech Parliament.
The debate took two days and over 25 hours.
ANO head and presidential candidate Andrej Babis was not present at the vote and the previous debate either.
Lower house head Marketa Pekarova Adamova (TOP 09) wrote on Twitter that Babis would like to fight against the government as a president, however, when he is supposed to vote on no confidence in it, he does not come to work.
„The citizens should know that he will always only fight for himself and the interest of (his) Agrofert holding,“ Pekarova wrote, referring to Babis.
Besides Babis, another seven ANO MPs and three SPD members excused themselves from the vote.
Out of the coalition, three Christian Democrats, two members of STAN and one member of ODS were not present.
The ANO movement provoked the no-confidence vote during the presidential election in Czechia. It said it was because the coalition had not let it discuss the opposition topics at the lower house session the week before.
The government coalition connected it with the candidacy of ANO head Babis.
Babis advanced to the second round of the presidential election, which is to be held on January 27 and 28, along with former high-ranking army and NATO official Petr Pavel, the winner of the first round.
The first attempt to topple Fiala’s cabinet took place last September.
