Civic Democrat Tluchoř calls for substantial change in party leadership

Prague/Brno, Oct 22 (CTK) - The change in the leadership of the Czech senior ruling Civic Democratic Party (ODS) should be "undoubtedly substantial" following the lost regional and Senate elections and the party's declining preferences, ODS "rebellious" MP Petr Tluchor said Monday.

The ODS election congress to be held in Brno on November 2-4 will not deal with the controversial government tax package but mainly with the party's "fatal debacle" in the recent elections to the regional assemblies and to one-third of the Senate, Tluchor added.

The ODS lost ten senators and won in four wards only and it will now have 15 seats in the 81-seat Senate, which is the lowest number the party has had since the upper house was established in 1996.

Moreover, the Civic Democrats won only in one of the 13 Czech regions and lost a number of seats in the regional assemblies.

Prime Minister and ODS chairman Petr Necas commented on possible changes in the ODS leadership saying "changes in the party leadership are made at every congress."

"I do not remember a congress that would have elected the leadership in the same composition as before," Necas told CTK in Brno Monday.

He added that he "firmly believes" he would defend the post of ODS chairman. However, he is expecting an open and critical discussion about the elections' results, he noted.

Necas called the party's results a failure after the polls.

In an interview with journalists, Tluchor Monday indirectly criticised Necas as well as ODS deputy head and Chamber of Deputies chairwoman Miroslava Nemcova.

"We have undoubtedly two top ODS representatives who both occupy supreme constitutional posts - or two out of the four supreme posts - and I have a feeling that the decrease in the (ODS) preferences in the past two years is so immense that at least the ODS inner leadership must assume responsibility for it. If it does not do so itself, the congress must pronounce it," Tluchor said

The ODS is not fulfilling its own programme, he indicated.

He added that the congress would also debate whether the ODS should play the role of the right-wing policy leader.

However, Tlucho, former hea dof the ODS deputy group, refused to speculate about concrete names (of the ODS possible new leaders).

A group of ODS deputies-rebels led by Tluchor criticise the government stabilisation package of tax changes. Tluchor said Monday they would not support it in a repeated vote if it still included a tax rise.

Necas connected the vote on the government tax package with a vote of confidence in his cabinet. If it were not passed, his government would fall.