Prague, July 20 (CTK) – Deputy Prime Minister Andrej Babis (ANO) feels excluded from the debate on the police shake-up led by the Interior Ministry, the Police Presidium and state attorneys and he insists that the controversial changes be postponed, he told journalists yesterday.
“We assist in the debate of the interior minister (Milan Chovanec) and the police president (Tomas Tuhy) with state attorneys, not knowing about what in particular their debate is about. We have been excluded from the debate,” Babis said.
“we insist on the postponement of the police shake-up, but the Social Democrats (CSSD) ignore our call,” he added.
At its meeting yesterday, the Czech cabinet deals with the establishment of the new National Centre against Organised Crime, within which the elite anti-corruption and anti-mafia police squads will merge. The centre is to start operation in August.
Supreme State Attorney Pavel Zeman, who is critical of the planned police shake-up, took part in the discussion about this point of the cabinet’s agenda.
Deputy Interior Minister Petr Mlsna said earlier yesterday all 45 comments that state attorneys had to the challenged police shake-up were dealt with, except for four technical comments.
The planned police reorganisation caused a rift in the government coalition. ANO even threatened to leave the government. Some state attorneys and elite police detectives had reservations about the shake-up as well.
