Prime Minister Petr Nečas’ cabinet has had one of the highest turnovers in the history of the Czech Republic. Since July 2010, 12 ministers have left, including the current departures of Defense Minister Alexander Vondra and Transport Minister Pavel Dobeš. Vondra is the last of the original five ministers from the Civic Democrats’ senior coalition party. Seven ministers from other coalition parties have also left the cabinet over the last two years. Radio Prague quotes Nečas saying that this relatively high turnover actually sends a positive signal to voters. “It’s unlike in the case of previous governments or government members, when people held on to government seats in such a way as to create the impression that their backs were stuck to the seat in question,” Nečas said. Jindřich Šídlo, a journalist and political commentator, disagreed, claiming the turnover was because of the infighting within Nečas’s own party. While the government’s original majority in the Lower House has shrunk, officials have still succeeded to push through economic reforms and church restitutions. Šídlo does not expect, however, that Nečas’ government will survive much longer. Šídlo predicts the Civic Democrats will lose big in the 2014 election.
