Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka announced his shock resignation Tuesday in a high-stakes row with billionaire finance minister, Andrej Babis, a popular political rival tipped to win elections later this year. "I will shortly - probably this week - present my resignation to President Milos Zeman," Sobotka said. Sobotka explained his decision was a way " to free the hands of coalition parties so they can launch negotiations on a solution to the situation or agree on the organisation of earlier elections."
He also made it clear his cabinet would go with him. "It is unacceptable for Andrej Babis to stay on as finance minister," Sobotka said, amid allegations of conflict of interest over the tycoon's business activities. Last week Sobotka asked Babis to clarify past use of some 55 million euros ($60 million) worth of tax-free bonds in connection with his farming conglomerate Agrofert - an affair that has raised questions about tax evasion.
"Everyone must play by the rules. Minister Babis is embroiled in a massive conflict of interest," Sobotka told reporters. Ranked by Forbes as the Czech Republic's second wealthiest citizen, Babis has flatly denied any wrongdoing and labelled Sobotka's decision "absolutely tragic" and "desperate." "I have always acted in line with the law," Babis insisted Tuesday.
His popular centrist ANO party is riding high in opinion polls, scoring 33.5 percent support compared to just 16 percent for Sobotka's CSSD party, in a survey conducted by the pollsters CVVM in April. "Perhaps he has nothing to do, but I still have some work to do myself," Babis quipped. In office since 2014, Sobotka's leftist CSSD shares power in a three-member coalition government with Babis's ANO and the smaller centre-right KDU-CSL Christian Democratic parties. Presidential spokesman Jiri Ovcacek declined to make any immediate comment. Under the Czech constitution, there is no deadline for the president to accept the government's resignation.
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