Former PM at hearing for Constitutional Court position

On Wednesday, the hearing of nominees for judges of the Constitutional Court at the Parliamentary Constitutional Committee began. Most media attention was paid to the hearing of the former Prime Minister and SMER-SD chair Robert Fico. When asked if he did not see it a problem that an active politician was running for a position in the Constitutional Court, Fico replied that the Court was created politically, meaning that political parties would play games when selecting the candidates for the Court's judges. "Let's seek a balance between the interests of the majority and the minority in Parliament and the president," he said, stressing that it is not unusual for politicians abroad to take up posts in constitutional bodies. Former justice minister and independent MP Lucia Žitňanská asked Fico what he intended to do in order to prevent his personality from lowering the credibility of the Constitutional Court. Fico replied that it is good for the constitutional bodies to be filled by people with not only professional but also political experience. At the same time, he said that he acknowledges the fact that Žitňanská will not vote for him in the House. Fico also stated that he would not take part in MPs' election of candidates in the House, meaning that he would not vote for himself. The voting should take place on Tuesday and the Parliament should elect 18 candidates for the positions.