Czech press survey - November 27

He adds that ODS deputy chairman Ivan Langer, who has proposed a certain model of the party's "two-track leadership," will probably never become its chairman.

In spite of his undoubted organisational skills, Langer has been steadily unpopular and he figures in the Krakatice (Giant squid) police file mapping the activities of controversial businessman and alleged underworld boss Frantisek Mrazek who was shot dead in January 2006, which prevents Langer from the supreme party post, Weiss points out.

He adds that the ODS has a sufficient number of "crown princes" offering themselves for the posts of deputy chairpersons or possibly acting chairman and even more people willing to have influence but not to assume posts with responsibility.

Nevertheless, the party is short of a personality to be a genuine national leader, Weiss writes in LN.

The mills of God grind slowly, Alexandr Mitrofanov writes in Pravo today, commenting on the results of a poll on the regional governors's popularity, in which Central Bohemia Governor David Rath (Social Democrats, CSSD) has finished last.

Except for Pavel Bem (Civic Democrats, ODS), mayor of the City of Prague, which has a status of a region, the Social Democrats occupy the posts of governors in all 13 regions in the Czech Republic.

Consequently, the poll has assessed popularity of "the CSSD's personnel reserves," Mitrofanov writes.

According to the poll, Rath is deservedly the least popular regional governor with whom only 9 percent of respondents are satisfied, Mitrofanov says.

He reminds that Rath has become a nationwide symbol. He embodies exaggerated self-confidence, high ambitions beyond local borders, and primarily aggressive behaviour though he is definitely smart and alert, too, Mitrofanov writes.

Rath may play the role of "a trial balloon" to test the public reaction to a possible central government of the CSSD with the Communists (KSCM). The negative assessment of Rath shows that people have not lost common sense, Mitrofanov points out.

CSSD chairman Jiri Paroubek has been very sensitive to poll results. In this respect, "the Rath stock prices should drop." Maybe the mills of God have finally started to grind, Mitrofanov writes in conclusion.

Top Czech politicians should not insult one another in an unfair way, Jiri Hanak writes elsewhere in Pravo today.

He recalls that TOP 09 leader Karel Schwarzenberg last week unrightfully compared the Social Democratic Party to "a loose woman," which is actually a whore.

The Czech Social Democracy has never been such despite various treacherous leaders during its history, and to compare it to a whore is worse than a crime - it is an act of immense stupidity, Hanak writes.

He also criticises CSSD chairman Jiri Paroubek over his "systemic attacks" on Pravo journalists.

Most recently, Paroubek got angry at Pravo's commentator Alexandr Mitrofanov since the latter expressed surprise at Paroubek not having mentioned Milos Zeman, former CSSD chairman and ex-prime minister, in his speech on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the CSSD's restoration.

No matter whether someone likes Zeman personally or not, he has done for the CSSD much more than Paroubek has so far, Hanak adds.

Autor: ČTK
www.ctk.cz