According to the Czech Senate Security Committee, President Miloš Zeman is unfit to remain in office, as his actions are not compatible with the domestic and foreign policies of the republic. The Senate will vote on a proposal to remove him next week. Representatives of the President described the move as an organized coup attempt, and an attack on freedom, democracy, and the constitution. Photo Credit: Hrad.cz.
Czech Rep., June 3 (BD) – According to Czech media sources, the Czech Senate Security Committee has stated that Miloš Zeman is unfit to remain as President. The Senate will hold a discussion and vote next week on whether to remove him from office. The Czech constitution states that if the Senate calls for Zeman’s removal, the Chamber of Deputies will also need to confirm this decision.
Senator Pavel Fischer, Chair of the Committee, said that Zeman’s public statements in relation to the Vrbětice case prove that he is confused and misinterprets the Czech constitution. Fischer added that “Zeman does not act in accordance with his oath, and violates the European Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms towards the media. The Senate has the exclusive power of oversight of the President, and is therefore obliged to deal with the President’s actions.”
The Committee argued that Zeman cannot distinguish classified government information from public information, and has therefore endangered the security of the Czech Republic with his approach to the Vrbětice case. The Committee also criticised Zeman’s inability to fulfill his daily tasks as president, and remain compatible with the official foreign and domestic policies of the republic. At the same time, they accused Zeman of attacks against the media, the upper house of the Parliament, and various groups of the Czech population.
Zeman’s spokesman, Jiří Ovčáček, described the Committee’s actions as an attack on freedom, democracy, and the constitution, adding that the issue was no longer a media debate, but an organized coup attempt.
The Czech constitution states that Zeman can be removed from office ‘if the President of the Republic is unable or unfit to exercise his presidential duties for serious reasons, and if the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate decide to remove the president from the office.’ If Zeman leaves his position, the powers of the Head of State would be shared by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, the Chamber of Deputies, and the Senate.
