By: Dr Vinko Gorenak
The current Golob coalition has enough votes that the SD or the Levica parties can abstain or even vote against a particular law, and the law will be passed. Practically speaking, Golob’s freedom has 41 MPs, if we add to that the two minorities, which as a rule vote with the government coalition, which is quite understandable, Golob has 43 votes in the National Assembly. So, nothing can happen if the SD or the Levica, as said, do not support a law or even vote against it. Moreover, Golob needs three Židans (I mean the delinquent in the previous term, who left the SMC and “sold” himself to the SD). Considering the kind of capital at his disposal, it is entirely possible that he will “buy” three Židans and governs without the Levica and even without the SD. Such is the voting math in the National Assembly.
Something like this is actually already happening. Golob’s coalition recently adopted the Act on Amendments and Supplements to the Act on Financial Administration. Among other things, the law provides for the secret tracking of vehicles that may be transporting illegal substances, such as drugs, without a court order. The government coalition convinced us that it was about secret tracking of vehicles and not people, so a court order was not needed. It is as if vehicles, especially trucks, were driving on the road without a driver. If you secretly follow the truck, then you are also secretly following the driver at the same time, which is of course prohibited by our law. Only a court can authorise covert tracking.
And speak of the devil. The National Council vetoed the aforementioned law, and 46 votes were needed in the National Assembly to vote on the veto or the law. This is what happened. Of course, Golob’s Svoboda party was in favour, the SD MPs kept quiet and did not vote, while the Levica MPs gritted their teeth and supported the law, but at the same time announced that they would challenge their own law in the Constitutional Court and propose a temporary suspension of the law. But why if they were for the law? Understand who can, but I cannot.
But at the same time, they got completely confused. On the official TW profile, the Levica first wrote that they would “submit” the case to the Constitutional Court for review. However, when I, among others (including Anže Logar), also warned them that they were not legitimate proponents, they replied that they were “agreed for a constitutional review”, which means that, after recognising their own mistake, they agreed so with one of the eligible applicants.
In fact, according to the provisions of Article 23/a of the Act on the Constitutional Court, it is not at all difficult to determine with whom they “agreed” for the constitutional review. Eligible applicants are:
- The government of the Republic of Slovenia, which according to the logic of things will not demand a constitutional review, but maybe also since its president Golob knows how to protest against himself on the street.
- The Council of State, which also voted no on the veto.
- A third of the MPs are also legitimate proponents of a constitutional review, I do not believe that they are in agreement with SDS or NSI.
- The Information Commissioner, the Court of Audit, and the Bank of Slovenia, and the prosecutor’s office in particular, local communities cannot do this according to the legal provisions.
- That leaves only the Ombudsman. Only with him could they realistically agree on the constitutional review of the aforementioned law.
If such an agreement exists between the Ombudsman and the Levica party, it is a new scandal. The ombudsman is completely independent by law and the Levica has nothing to negotiate with him.
Let’s leave these complications to the Levica party, the more they get involved, the more they lose voters, and that is good for Slovenia. It is more than clear that they are the last spare wheel of Golob’s coalition.
A few more photos of the messages on the TW profile.