Incumbent Parliamentary Chair Richard Raši (Hlas-SD) on Tuesday welcomed former House chairs to Bratislava Castle to mark the 34th anniversary of the adoption of the Slovak Constitution.
Ivan Gašparovič, František Mikloško, Jozef Migaš, Pavol Hrušovský, Andrej Danko, Boris Kollar, Richard Sulik, Bela Bugar and Peter Žiga accepted the invitation to the ceremonial lunch. Current President Peter Pellegrini, who also previously served as speaker of Parliament, was also in attendance.
"Figures who, at various times, were responsible for leading the Slovak parliament gathered around a single table. Despite our differing views and political backgrounds, we're united by our respect for the Slovak Constitution and for our country's democratic institutions. I'm pleased that we commemorated this significant day together," Raši posted on social media.
Pellegrini praised the fact that the tradition of gathering together former parliamentary leaders is being upheld. He regards it as an opportunity to remind people that politics should, above all, be a service to the people and the country. "In my view, the best way to celebrate the values on which Slovakia is founded is to put them into practice every day - through civilised political debate, mutual respect and the passing of laws that benefit the people and the whole nation. I therefore hope that the Slovak Parliament will be characterised by an as objective and civilised an atmosphere as possible, and that it will adopt decisions that will move Slovakia forward," he stated on social media.
Tuesday 1 September marked 34 years since the adoption of the Slovak Constitution. MPs of the then Slovak National Council approved it four months before the setting up of the independent Slovak Republic. The latter came into being on 1 January 1993 following the dissolution of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic. The adoption of the Slovak Constitution on 1 September 1992 has been commemorated as a public holiday - Constitution Day - since 1994.
Source: TASR
