Jiří Pospíšil: None of us is thinking about a coalition with the ANO movement
It is the topic of every election, it happened this time as well. Will the ODS, this time the TOGETHER grouping, join a coalition with the ANO movement in Prague? Jiří Pospíšil, the number two candidate for SPOLU, rules this out in an interview with the daily FORUM 24. And he described what the biggest priorities are for the next council.
The main topic of the election is logically transport. But that’s always the case, and little seems to change. What should be done in the next four years to improve the situation?
We must stop solving things for the sake of effect, as has unfortunately often been the case in the last four years, and instead we must focus on key issues, such as the real progress of the construction of the Prague ring road.
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If he has the mayor TOGETHER and a majority in the city council, will he start building the ring road?
Yes. It is our main program goal in the field of transport. They were happy to calm the traffic in the center, but this must be preceded by the completion of the construction of the Prague Ring Road. It is not possible to solve problems from the end. Therefore, the clear answer is: the construction of the circuit will begin! We are already cooperating with the Ministry of Transport, Martin Kupka, and we are solving how to speed up and thereby get passing cars out of our city.
Will the new Philharmonic building be built?
The construction of the new philharmonic building depends on the state of the Prague and national budgets. If Prague receives enough funding from the state coffers for this project, which will serve not only the people of Prague, but also the people of the whole country, we can start building the new philharmonic building.
In the current situation, how should Prague help people with rising prices, and what should the city do to save on energy prices?
Substantial measures have now been implemented by the government, which has correctly capped the prices of electricity and gas. But the city should not add more economic worries to the citizens in difficult times, and that is why I personally think that now is not the time for any increase in the price of city services, such as public transport and the like, even if there could be reasons for this due to inflation. The city must save energy wherever possible. It shouldn’t be about turning off public lights and the like, but rather about finding savings and installing equipment that consumes less.
Are you worried that your natural coalition partner STAN won’t be strong enough to have a majority in line together?
I believe that our TOGETHER coalition will be strong enough not only to win the Prague elections, but also so that it does not have to worry about how its potential partners will turn out. A strong TOGETHER in Prague will also be an important signal before the upcoming presidential elections. A signal that Andrej Babiš has a strong strong fall on the political scene, which led him.
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In an interview for Deník N, Bohuslav Svoboda rejected the coalition with the Pirates, but praised Patrik Nacher. Can you rule out that the TOGETHER coalition could merge with the YES movement after the election?
The threat of a coalition between TOGETHER and ANO has long been purposefully “played” by the Pirates, who are themselves in a coalition with ANO in the Pilsen and Zlín regions. And just as recently, they were at the mayor’s residence in Prague 11. And this is what Mr. Čižinský says, who sat in the coalition for four years – and for some time was even a key voice in the coalition – of Mrs. Krnáčová, the former mayor of Prague for ANO. But to answer your question clearly. At this moment, none of us is even thinking about a coalition with the ANO movement, and I personally believe that TOGETHER will have enough votes to create a majority with reasonable Nebabish entities after the elections.
How did the Dosimeter case damage the coalition and you personally?
The case Dozimetr showed that it represents the current leadership of the city about a kind of anti-corruption coalition, as the Pirates and Prague liked to refer to themselves in the media, completely disappeared. In contrast to them, we don’t just want to talk about the fight against corruption, so we will double the control in the area of orders and contracts. In addition, in the person of Hana Marvanová, it offers the people of Prague someone who was able to point out problems in the DPP and actively spoke out against the supervisory board. I firmly believe that the voters perceive all this and that they will take it into account in a few days.
What convinced you that you did not give up the candidacy?
First of all, my own belief that I have nothing to do with the Dosimeter criminal case. I’m not a suspect, much less an accused. And secondly, and this is closely related, I was very supported by the support of the coalition partners and the regional organization. Ultimately, in a few days, the voter will be the one who will decide about my involvement in politics. It will not be the media or political competition, but the voter. In my opinion, this is the most correct.
In addition to culture, you are also active in the field of animal rights in Prague. Do you want to somehow relate this activity to working at the municipality?
I have been dedicated to the protection of animal rights for a long time. Now, Eva Holubová and others have founded the Animal Ombudsman association, which should help, for example, with cases where, for example, animal abuse occurs and state or local authorities do not solve or cannot solve, because perhaps there is a lack of appropriate legislation. As for the municipality and the “animal” theme, I have recently been involved in making sure that horse-drawn carriages no longer run in the city center, because the horses there suffered from unsuitable conditions for their presence. Personally, I also think that it would behoove Prague, as a modern European metropolis, for one of the members of the city council to be assigned the area of animal rights protection.